Novak Djokovic: The ultimate sportsman in tennis

In such a situation, normally you would expect a person, who was so battered, to lose his cool and grow frustrated. Djokovic was no saint either and his feeling of anguish was clearly visible from the way the unforced errors kept on piling up from his racquet. But what happened next was something that we rarely used to see nowadays in tennis. When he was already 1-4 down in the fourth set and was agonizingly close to finishing second, he found an exquisite forehand down the line, coming off the racquet of his Spanish adversary, breaching his baseline defence. Novak did not bend his head down in disappointment and instead – shrugging off his adversity – gave thumbs up to the southpaw by clapping on the racquet, in appreciation of the shot.

Djokovic and Nadal; Foes on the court, friends off it

Such type of gestures by the Serb, though not rare these days, the fact that he was able to do it in the championship match of a Grand Slam, particularly when the chips were down for him, epitomized his sporting spirit, more than anything. That was not all. Once the match was over and although he was routed rather pathetically 6-1 in the fourth set, he managed to sport a pleasant smile (no guile in it) while greeting his opponent with a gentle hug. No one else, not even Federer and Rafa himself, have been able to put up a brave face or wear a pleasant look whenever they ended up on the losing side in important tournaments. But strangely it was Djokovic, who had earlier been arraigned for his arrogant behaviour and rudeness on the court in the past, has been coming up with such magnanimous gestures, showing to the whole world what sportsmanship is all about.

Djokovic has never enjoyed a nice boy image in the past. He was often criticized for his impersonation of fellow players. Roger Federer, in particular, had been a strong critic of such imitations though a certain section of players loved seeing him doing them. Rafael Nadal, for one, had always been a fan of the pranks, unleashed by the Serb. When he beat Nole in the final of Rome Masters, 2009 he laid down a request to impersonate him during the presentation ceremony. A reluctant Djoker finally obliged his friend’s request, leaving Rafa and the capacity crowd burst into laughter. It was not an easier evening for the Serb who not only failed to retain his title which he won in 2008 but also was pushed down to No.4 in world rankings. However, having learned to laugh at the face of disaster he made sure that the mood remained upbeat in both the camps. He did not let the defeat engulf him. Rather he chose to remain unscathed by disaster, truly living up to Kipling’s words. That’s Djokovic for you – a man who does not get bogged down by his defeats and instead pursues to uphold the spirit of the game, by all means necessary.

If his father’s words in a Serbian magazine infuriated tennis fans all round the world not long ago, the sporting spirit that his most celebrated son displayed in his matches against Wawrinka and Nadal in the recently concluded US Open has definitely elevated his status as one of the greatest sportsmen in the world.