HIGHLIGHTS

• Novak Djokovic gifted his racquet to a young fan after winning his 19th Grand Slam title
• He was in my ear the entire match basically, he was encouraging me: Djokovic
• Djokovic defeated Tsitsipas in the French Open 2021 final after losing the first 2 sets

Alucky young fan got a souvenir of a lifetime when world number one Novak Djokovic gifted him his racquet following the French Open 2021 men’s singles title win against Stefanos Tsitsipas.

From two sets down, Djokovic rallied to win the next three to clinch his 19th Grand Slam title. At Wimbledon 2021, the Serbian ace will have a chance to equal Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s tally of 20 Grand Slam wins each.

Achieving the feat could not have been possible for Novak Djokovic had that boy in the stands not “coached, encouraged and motivated him”. In the press conference the 34-year-old has revealed the reason why he handed his racquet to the fan.

“He was in my ear the entire match basically, especially when I was two-sets-to-love down,” Djokovic said. “He was encouraging me. He was actually giving me tactics, as well. He was like, ‘Hold your serve, get an easy first ball, then dictate, go to his backhand.’ He was coaching me, literally.

“I found that very cute, very nice. So I felt like to give the racquet to the best person was him after the match,” Djokovic said. “That was kind of my gratitude for him sticking with me and supporting me,” Novak Djokovic said.

The boy fan erupted into a fit of disbelief after Djokovic’s gesture. THE video of the same has now gone viral.

Former World No. 1 John McEnroe, who was commentating on the match, was excited for the youngster.

“He’s pumped up!” McEnroe said. “Maybe get him to sign it while we’re at it. Inspire him to get on the court and practise. Sleep with that racquet!”