All is forgiven as Djokovic gets a hero’s reception
It was almost as if Novak Djokovic had never been away, or at least never been deported. the wimbledon champion admitted to feeling emotional after receiving a rousing ovation on his return to Melbourne Park, facing another player who polarises opinion, Nick Kyrgios.
the pair met in a repeat of last summer’s sw19 final and, in a less serious affair, it ended with them sharing 13 games.
signposts for the important business coming over the next two weeks were hard to discern. However, that the ‘arena showdown’ happened at all after rumours of its cancellation sent a key message.
this is that there is nothing especially wrong with the hamstring injury which has been bothering the nine-time Melbourne champion, and which appears the main impediment to his title tally reaching double figures.
Earlier in the day, during his practice, his physio had been administering rubs and tape to the affected area, but he would not have played this exhibition if there was cause for concern.
‘I’m very happy. thank you so much,’ he told the packed Rod Laver arena crowd on his first appearance there for two years. ‘I feel a bit emotional right now. I was really looking forward to coming back to this court.’
the match was a slightly strange add-on ahead of the australian Open, another brainchild of hyperactive tennis australia, who have rarely seen a new idea or scheme that they have not wished to have a go at.
It was this mindset that last year got them into all the trouble with Djokovic, when the pandemic was still causing havoc.
Instead of stating that everyone needed to be vaccinated to play, an arrangement was concocted to get him into the country. that quickly fell apart when the national government realised the outrage. sentiments are much more sanguine now in Melbourne, and it was all fandom at the RLA.
Kyrgios’ relationship with his wider home public is also the source of some fascination. In a country sensitive about how it is viewed by the rest of the world, there are those who fear his excesses give a poor impression.
that, however, appears to be changing somewhat in line with him starting to deliver on his talent.
according to nine-time wimbledon doubles champion todd woodbridge — now a prominent TV presenter — even the more sceptical are starting to take a more charitable view.
‘He turned it around among the australian public at wimbledon, because he started backing everything up with actual results,’ woodbridge told Sportsmail. ‘there used to be two groups of people here: the younger crowd who liked Nick and watched him, and the older, more conservative crowd who didn’t like him but watched nonetheless.
‘He’s still got the younger crowd onside but, say, middle-aged blokes who I play golf with, they are more inclined to wish him well and would want to support him, but that is because he has started to be winning on the court.’
Kyrgios has conceded that the expectations of playing in his home Grand slam weigh heavily upon him. His withdrawal from the United Cup team event has further iced up his relationship with his fellow top australian player, alex de Minaur.
another reason Kyrgios might be feeling the pressure is the imminent charge being heard against him that he assaulted his former girlfriend, Chiara Passari.
this is due to be heard in the week after the Open in his home town of Canberra. He has always disputed the charges.