Wimbledon: Crowd whistling, coughing was not necessary, says angry Djokovic

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic blasted Wimbledon's Centre Court crowd on Saturday, claiming fans "whistled and coughed" as he prepared to serve, insisting he deserves better treatment.

The three-time champion described the sometimes febrile atmosphere on the famed arena as similar to that of a Davis Cup tie as he downed home favourite Kyle Edmund 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4. Djokovic was furious with the reaction of a section of the crowd after he had been given a time violation for bouncing the ball too often. "I thought the crowd's reaction was quite unnecessary. A couple of guys pretending they were coughing and whistling while I was bouncing the ball more or less to the end of the match at that end where I received the time violation," said former World No. 1 Djokovic.

"Those are the things obviously that people don't get to see or hear on the TV. I just think it's not necessary. That's what I didn't like." Djokovic responded by sarcastically blowing kisses to the crowd and cupping his ear as he unleashed the winning strokes.

"You would probably understand if you were in my position," said the 12-time major winner. "I'm a human being like anybody else, I can feel the pressure as everybody else. I just reacted the way I thought it was fair."

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