Statue of Novak Djokovic at Melbourne Park? Australian Open director opens up-OxBig News Network

Australian Open director Craig Tiley said that tennis greats like Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer, and Serena Williams should have their statues at the Melbourne Park. The 37-year-old Djokovic is the most successful player in the hard court major, having won the tournament 10 times. Serena is second in the list with seven titles, while Federer has won the championship six times.

Djokovic, who has 24 Grand Slam titles his name, recently played in the Australian Open where he had to withdraw from his semi-final clash against Alexander Zverev. Djokovic retired midway from the match due to a leg injury after the first set. The injury also troubled him in the quarterfinal against four-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz.

Tiley talked about the importance of honouring big players. “I’d like to have a whole precinct full of statues of the great tennis players. Every year we put up a new statue of an Australian and this precinct is about tennis, it was built with tennis in mind,” Craig Tiley told News Corp.

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On Djokovic’s chances of adding to his Australian Open trophies, Tiley said, “I mean, he’s won this event 10 times and I still think he can win it again.”

“We have so many people that come here from right around the world. They come to the precinct when the Australian Open is not on because they want to see the place that it happens, and I think there is more we can offer those fans from the tennis precinct,” Tiley said.

“I think any time we can recognise tennis or the champions of the game, I’m going to go for it. Whether it’s Novak, Roger Federer, Serena Williams – the list goes on,” Tiley added.

During his campaign in the Australian Open, Djokovic was also involved in a controversy with Channel Nine reporter Tony Jones. After his match against Jiri Lehecka, Djokovic refrained from the post-match on-court interview and later revealed that it was because Jones had insulted him and Serbian fans. Later, Jones issued an apology to Djokovic.