Wimbledon icon John McEnroe gives Novak Djokovic new nickname and makes honest admission

John McEnroe has branded Novak Djokovic "the Darth Vader of tennis" following the Serbian's recent outburst at Wimbledon. Djokovic advanced to the quarter-finals via a routine straight sets win over Holger Rune on Tuesday, although not without controversy.

After the match, the 24-time Grand Slam champion hit out at the crowd after what he perceived had been an unfair level of verbal abuse throughout the contest. The 37-year-old accused sections of the crowd of booing him, though others claimed it was Rune's supporters shouting the Dane's surname instead.

In any case, Djokovic took no prisoners in his post-match interview, telling his critics to have a "gooooood [mimicking the sound of booing] night". While speaking to BBC colleague Clare Balding afterwards, McEnroe, 65, leaped to Djokovic's defence, insisting that he didn't deserve to be disrespected.

"Don't you think there's been at least 100 matches over the course of the last 10-15 years that Djokovic has been disrespected because of how good he is?" McEnroe began. "What has he done that's so bad? Name it. What is it, he wants it? He competes as hard as anyone who's ever competed? Is it the look, where he's from?"

The American compared the treatment meted out to Djokovic to the treatment afforded to the likes of Roger Federer and Rafa Nadal, pointing out that they were chalk and cheese. Part of the reason for that, McEnroe admits, is that Djokovic has leaned into the bad guy persona tennis fans seem so keen to pin to him.

"He's like the Darth Vader compared to two of the classiest acts we've seen play tennis - Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer. Who can compare to them in terms of what they brought to the table? Nobody - and then this guy Djokovic spoils the party," McEnroe said.

"So then how about respecting him after all this? He's by far the guy who's taken the worst heat and that's why I would say he's the greatest that's ever played."

Djokovic was handed a boost in his quest to retain his Wimbledon crown after his quarter-final opponent, Alex De Minaur, withdrew from the tournament. It gives the World No.2 a bye into the semi-finals, where he'll face the winner of Lorenzo Musetti and Taylor Fritz.

A repeat of last year's final is still on the cards, with defending champion Carlos Alcaraz gearing up for a semi-final clash with Daniil Medvedev. And if we do have a repeat of the 2023 showpiece, there'll be no prizes for guessing who the Centre Crowd will be backing.