Goran Ivanisevic claims Novak Djokovic is ‘treated like a villain’ by unjust tennis fans

Novak Djokovic is set to go down in history as the greatest tennis player of all-time, but that did not stop him from being ‘treated like a villain’, according to his former coach Goran Ivanisevic.

Ivanisevic parted company with Djokovic last week, after a highly successful partnership that saw the Serbian superstar win a host of Grand Slam titles and cement his staus as the ultimate champion in this golden era of the men’s game.

So it was a major shock when Djokovic confirmed his partnership with Ivanisevic had ended with this statement on Instagram: “I remember clearly the moment I invited Goran to be part of my team. It was back in 2018, and Marian and I were looking to innovate and bring some serve magic to our duo.

“In fact, not only we brought serve, but also lots of laughter, fun, year-end no1 rankings, record-breaking achievements and 12 more Grand Slams (and a few finals) to the count since then. Did I mention a bit of drama too?

“Goran and I decided to stop working together a few days ago. Our on-court chemistry had its ups and downs, but our friendship was always rock solid.

“In fact, I am proud to say (not sure he is) that apart from winning tournaments together, we also had a side battle in (the board game) Parchisi going on… for many years. And – that tournament never stops for us. Thanks for everything my friend. Love you.”

Now Ivanisevic has opened up in a compelling interview with journalist Sasa Ozmo, as he looked back on the final days of his partnership with Djokovic and mo much more.

The final section of the interview may have been the most revealing, as Ivanisevic opened up on what it felt like to travel with Djokovic.

READ MORE: Goran Ivanisevic casts fresh doubts over Novak Djokovic’s future with telling comment

“Everywhere we went people were looking at us, at him like a villain,” said Ivanisevic.

“Of course, there were also people who gave their support, who came up to us telling us to stay strong. But there were many who were very rude, aggressive.

“Novak, when all the cameras are off and when he is most himself, he is a good person, he has a big heart. I was always ready to even die for him if it were necessary, he was fighting against the whole world.”

Ivanisevic also opened up on the reasons why his partnership with Djokovic ended, as he admitted the relationship has run its course.

“Well I read a lot of those… I repeat again, people just have to write something, unfortunately, no one was even close to getting it,” he stated.

“I mean, there isn’t really a “real” reason. One reason is indeed a sense of saturation/fatigue, this really was a difficult and intense five years. People forget that period during the coronavirus, they forget that he was at one moment labelled as the greatest villain on the planet because of his vaccination status.

“So then we weren’t allowed in this country, then that country, then we travel over here… I mean, we were always in some sort of limbo – playing, not playing, ready again, then changing restrictions which forbid us from playing and we can’t travel there. Not to mention Australia and all of that mayhem.

“We reached a certain level of saturation, as I like to say: “material fatigue”. Just as a car needs a regular service and tune up, basically I became tired of him, he became tired of me; in any case I didn’t feel like I could help him anymore.

“Even so, when we add it all up together, we achieved great things for ourselves and for tennis.”