"Our GOAT does not charge $150K for practice session with youngsters" - Novak Djokovic greeting UCLA students after training session delights fans

Tennis fans hailed Novak Djokovic and also took a dig at Rafael Nadal after the Serbian's recent interaction with fans in California.

Djokovic has not been in action since making a semifinal exit at the Australian Open last month. He is set to return to action at the Indian Wells Masters, which commences on March 6.

Ahead of the tournament, the Serb has been training at the University of California (UCLA), Los Angeles, and fans thronged to the college grounds to catch him in action. After his training session, the World No. 1 greeted everyone and took many selfies with them. He looked to have no security around him, giving fans free access.

Fans on social media were impressed with Djokovic's freewheeling interaction with the packed crowd, with one taking a dig at Nadal while praising the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

"Our GOAT does not charge 150K for practice session with the youngsters," said a fan.

That statement was referring to the fees being charged by Nadal for a private tennis session. The Spaniard is set to Carlos Alcaraz in an exhibition match, the 'Netflix Slam', on March 3 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Ahead of that, fans were given the option to take private tennis sessions with both players, with each session costing $150,000.

Another fan sarcastically remarked that fans should be safe around Djokovic as he has not taken the coronavirus vaccination.

"He’s not vaccinated, they better be careful," read one post on X (formerly Twitter)

Here are some more fan reactions:

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Andy Roddick picks Novak Djokovic over Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in the GOAT debate

The Serbian is a 24-time Grand Slam champion.

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, and Roger Federer have been widely hailed as three of the greatest players of all time. They dominated the men's circuit for more than two decades, going toe-to-toe for the biggest titles on the ATP tour.

Players, pundits, and fans have been divided over who can be crowned the GOAT (Great Of All Time) among the trio, as each is worthy of the title. Andy Roddick recently weighed in on the topic, stating that the Serbian is statistically ahead of both Nadal and Federer.

"You line up the three's resumes, if you choose any of them except for this one [Novak], you are an insane human. Very simply, that’s the way it is. Everything else is about preference of what you like to watch," he expressed on the 'Served with Andy Roddick' podcast.

Djokovic notably has 24 singles Grand Slam titles to his name, two more than Nadal and four more than Federer, who retired in 2022.