'This should not be the trial of Novak Djokovic', says former French player

Novak Djokovic had to face the toughest week of his career after the cancellation of the Adria Tour. The World number 1, who tested positive for COVID-19 together with his wife and other players (Grigor Dimitrov, Viktor Troicki, Goran Ivanisevic and Borna Coric), could also be removed from his role as president of the Players Council. After the debacle, the 17-time Grand Slam champion and everyone else involved apologized for their actions. Since then, the Serbian phenomenon has been targeted by countless accusations from numerous colleagues and insiders. Marseille tournament director Jean-Francois Caujolle had been one of the most critical of Djokovic, guilty of endangering the health of other people and of underestimating the opinion of the experts.

Caujolle on Novak Djokovic

"It reminds me of the parable of the Tower of Babel, where the people wanted to rise as high as the gods," Jean-Francois Caujolle had said. "One has the impression that Novak Djokovic thought himself above certain laws of nature...He imposes on others a form of mental pressure. He is someone who can be harmful. Today, he is not the tennis icon," the Frenchman had said. "If Roger Federer or Rafael Nadal had done that, it would have had even more impact. But Federer or Nadal would not have done it." As reported by L'Equipe, the Former French tennis player admitted that he had gone too far in his criticism of the World No. 1. "That I can condemn what happened in Zadar makes sense," Caujolle said. "However, I should not have gone that far regarding Novak. I am nobody to criticize him. This is all the more true since we have a lot in common. I am also a 'fan' of readings regarding personal development. So I regret what I could say because it is confusing. You can think that I think Novak Djokovic is an enlightened human being. Afterwards, to come back to this case, I am not trying to catch up with these words because it is clear that there was a fault in Croatia. However, this should not be the trial of the World No. 1," said the Frenchaman. "By offering a fairly harsh analysis of his personality, I went on to do so. In hindsight, I tell myself that this is not like me. That is why I wanted to make this point." Djokovic said that he would remain in self-isolation for the next 14 days and have another test in five days' time.  

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/3ipURi0