Wimbledon hero Novak Djokovic shows true colours as Liam Broady praises gesture

With Roger Federer retired and Rafael Nadal sitting out through injury, Carlos Alcaraz is viewed as Djokovic’s main competition at Wimbledon this year. Both players are through to the quarter-finals, with a meeting in Sunday’s main event still firmly on the cards.

By comparison, Broady’s Wimbledon journey was cut short as he lost out to Denis Shapovalov. Still, having made it to the third round, the 29-year-old went further than any other Brit in the men’s draw and gained a hoard of new fans in the process.

Crossing paths with Djokovic has made Broady hungry for more Grand Slam runs, and one particular experience with the Serb prompted a glowing review from the Stockport star.

“When you speak to [Djokovic] he’s a really nice guy and down to earth,” Broady told talkSPORT. “My nieces were at Wimbledon the other day and he was having his lunch. They interrupted him mid-meal and he was happy to take a picture and sign autographs.

“I feel like with a lot of this stuff people only realise what they’ve got when it’s gone. Once Novak leaves the sport I think people will realise what he’s done. He’s putting up Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi numbers but in tennis. I don’t think anyone is going to come close to what he’s achieving.”

“You can’t look past Djokovic [for this year’s tournament], seven-time [Wimbledon] champion and it’s kind of fated at this point,” Broady added. “People have been fighting against him being the GOAT of the sport for so long.

“It’s going to happen and what you fear most you bring into existence… and that’s what Novak is going to be doing. I don’t think he does [get the credit he deserves]. Sometimes I don’t think he helps himself with what he says in the press, but he is authentic. He’s completely himself.”