Q. Did you speak English back when you were 11? Could you talk to him?
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, I had it in school so already I knew some basic things. Back then, yeah, we were speaking kind of more with the signs, you know, hands and legs and stuff (smiling). He was using more of a Scottish accent, so he was really hard to understand.
Q. You also played doubles with him.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: He had the hair (laughter).
Q. A crowd of us came into the interview room and you took the senior role because he was overpowered by coming into a media spotlight. You seemed very composed already that day.
NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Because I wasn't facing that much media, you know, in my early stages of the career.
In one hand it's been a tough situation for him to face this pressure of media and being a British player. You know, everybody expects him to win Wimbledon and be the best player in the world because he's coming from a country of tennis, you know, a great history. Of course, Wimbledon, we all know it's the most prestigious tournament in our sport. And he faced all of that in his career. He managed to become one of the best players in the world. So you got to give him credit for that.
Actually, I remember that press conference we had. It was in the backroom there a couple years back. I was saying in one hand I would like to be in his shoes because he gets a big support obviously because of the country that he comes from. On the other hand I wouldn't like because of the media attention and pressure that he faces, yeah.
(Pic: Getty; Transcript)
