Novak Djokovic underlined that keeping it respectful is of key importance for the Laver Cup going forward. This past weekend, Djokovic represented Team Europe, which lost to Team World for the first time. But Djokovic and company accepted the loss very well and congratulated their opponents for claiming victory.
“Look, as Roger said, co-existing in this environment with respect and admiration for each other is something that I feel like we can all do, and we are, in a way, responsible to do,” Djokovic said. “I think it’s something that is rational and expected.”
Djokovic identifies positives about the Laver Cup
Tennis is an individual sport, where players are alone on the court and have to figure it out by themselves. But at the Laver Cup, it’s a completely different story as players are divided into two teams.
When one is playing, he is supported by his teammates from the bench. Djokovic, who was playing at the Laver Cup for the second time, feels there are lots of positive parts about the whole Laver Cup idea. “It’s also fair play.
I mean, those are the values that we all try to live by in the sports. And in the end of the day we are competitors,” Djokovic said. “We go out there against each other. We want to win matches, but off the court, it doesn’t mean that we should never speak to each other.
Actually, I feel like these weeks of the Laver Cup particularly are strengthening the bonds. I feel like, as Roger mentioned, we get an opportunity and time to pick each other’s brains and spend quality time off the court in some really interesting conversations about tennis of course mostly and life in general, which allows us to understand and know each other better, you know, which I think is really nice. It sends a great message out there to everyone.”
