‘Owns the Streets’ – Australian Open’s Historic Attendance Record Attributed to Novak Djokovic’s Mass Movement After Last Year’s Exodus

Serbian tennis great Novak Djokovic has shown his brilliance once again. The 35-year-old played through pain amidst the injury concerns to win his third-round match against Bulgarian tennis star Grigor Dimitrov. While the win in itself was special, the 35-year-old also helped the Australian Open create another attendance record.

Yesterday, the Australian Open recorded a record footfall of 94,854. While other matches were going on simultaneously, fans credit Djokovic for the majority of the attendance.

Fans Credit Novak Djokovic for record Attendance at the Australian Open

Yesterday was a big day in terms of attendance for the Australian Open. As per the Australian Open’s official Twitter account, a total of 60,457 came to watch the tournament in the daytime, while 34,397 fans attended the night matches. This totals up to a record 94,854 attendants. It surpasses the previous record of the highest footfall back in 2012, which was 93,709.

Djokovic played out his third-round match against Dimitrov yesterday and the fans believe it was the prime attraction. Here’s how they reacted to the news.

While everyone was busy lauding Djokovic as the actual crowd puller, a fan took the opportunity to take a dig at the Australian people who were trolling Djokovic earlier. He used the reference of Australian tennis star Nick Kyrgios for the same.

Another fan came up with a sarcastic dig at Djokovic haters.

Australia has a love-hate relationship with Novak Djokovic. While there are Aussies who passionately follow the greatest Australian Open star of all time, a few were against him after what happened last year. A drama following Djokovic’s deportation last year ensured a battle between Djokovic supporters and the supporters of the Australian government.

Read more: ‘Even Novak Djokovic Can Lose Sometimes’ – Daniil Medvedev Makes a Statement After His Loss

Now that Djokovic is back and roaring, the crowd is back again. Over the past few months, Djokovic gained the reputation of a villain among the big three. Media played a major part in that and Djokovic finally broke his silence when Eurosport misrepresented his toilet break conversation with the chair umpire in the first round of this year’s Australian Open.

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Fans lauded the response from the 21-time Grand Slam champion. It seems like after a controversial year, Djokovic is slowly getting back into the heart of fans. Do you back Djokovic for his 22nd Slam title? Let us know in the comments section.