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Novak Djokovic could find himself on the wrong side of crowd support at Rod Laver Arena again in tonight’s Australian Open final, despite being an eight-time champion.
That’s the call of Australian quad wheelchair superstar Dylan Alcott, as world No.1 Djokovic takes on fit Daniil Medvedev.
Russian star Medvedev resembles the always polarizing Djokovic in that he loves to feed off the crowd, whether with or against him.
His underdog status and willingness to provoke could well see him garnering crowd support against Djokovic, despite Serbia having the most men’s singles titles in Australian Open history.
“I want to put the crowd on my side,” Alcott said on Wide World of Sports’ Morning service, when discussing Medvedev’s plan for Sunday night’s final.
“Novak Djokovic has a tendency to get a little angry with the crowd, especially here in Australia, when he is an underdog [for crowd support].
“And he really liked himself by the crowd, Medvedev, the other day. At the end of Stefanos [Tsitsipas] game, they were pumped, they loved him. If he rallies the crowd, we’ve seen that before. Then it’s going to be an unprecedented battle. “
Australian doubles legend Todd Woodbridge recalled how Medvedev surprisingly turned the crowd in his favor at the 2019 US Open, after being the tournament villain until he faced Rafael Nadal in the final. Medvedev’s generous recovery after two sets to force an epic five-set (which he ultimately lost) won him sudden adoration from the New York crowd.
“The US Open… the crowd hated it during the tournament,” said Woodbridge.
“And then, from two sets to love against Rafa, he came back and he brought them back [the New York fans] with him. He understands what it means and how to use it. “
Alcott added: “I was there that night – they were pro-Medvedev against Rafa towards the end. I couldn’t believe it.”
Alcott said that against Tsitsipas, Medvedev started to gain support when he trolled the Melbourne crowd on an incredible backhand winner, waving his fingers mockingly in the air and playing his villainous billing.
“I’m telling you, a little bit of all this early, us Australians, we’ll get around it [against Djokovic]Said Alcott.
Djokovic was disrupted in last year’s Australian Open final when the Melbourne crowd started to fight for opponent Dominic Thiem, whom he ultimately beat in five sets.
While Djokovic has long had to accept that he does not extol the universal popularity of Nadal and Roger Federer, it seemed shocking that he was not favored against a lesser rival in a place where he has long ruled.
Yet faithful to his form, Djokovic ended up using the snub to be inspired by a provocative victory.
“It’s been a big part of his history when he’s on the pitch, he uses the fans for energy; whether it’s positive or negative,” said Woodbridge.
Nine tennis presenter Tom Rehn has predicted that most of the Rod Laver Arena crowd could fit in for Medvedev, rated a huge chance to win but still underdog as he tries to win his first Grand Slam title , against a 17-year-old man.
“It’s fascinating that the other night against Tsitsipas the crowd is all Tsitsipas and now they will probably be at 80% [for] Medvedev, ”Rehn said.
“That’s just the way it is – we love underdogs, don’t we?”
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