The Crowd

 Novak Djokovic

Tennis great Novak Djokovic had to retire from the 2025 Australian Open after sustaining a torn leg muscle in his dramatic victory over young phenom Carlos Alcatraz.  Novak was playing Alex Zverev in the semifinals when after losing in a closely contested first set 7-6 in a tiebreaker, he realized he couldn't continue and had to retire from the match.  

Novak has won 24 majors over his long distinguished career. He has won the Australian Open a record 10 times! At age 37 he continues to defy time with advance to the semifinals of the year's first major.  After battling Zverev and his leg injury in the semifinal, Novak could not go on and retired from the match.  Upon learning that Novak could not continue, some of the crowd proceeded to boo the 10 time champion. 

How does a crowd boo a 10 time champion that is 37 years old just winning a tough quarterfinal match and deciding to compete despite his injury. To be fair not everyone was booing but the crowd can make people do maddening things. While we are all a part of the crowd at times, we must remember to maintain our individuality and reason. 

A great champion that has devoted his life to the game of tennis and has sacrificed and endured the highs and lows of a long distinguished career deserves our respect even admiration. 

The crowd can make us do things we don't normally do but we can rise above all the noise and carry ourselves with class and dignity just like the great champions we are. 

With Love,

Coach K