Novak Djokovic hilariously grappled with an interlocutor following his victory over Tomas Machac at the Australian Open.
Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, including 10 wins in Melbourne, beat the Czech star 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 in the third round on Friday.
During the clash, the Serbian was forced to overcome adversity and faced some hostility from the crowd inside the Rod Laver Arena, something that has been a feature of the tournament.
This came after Danielle Collins slapped her behind and blew kisses to booers following her win over local hopeful Destanee Aiava on Thursday, before the American later boasted of her 'big paycheck'. of $180,000 (£147,000)'.
Collins was later booed by the crowd, whom she accused of being “super drunk,” but Djokovic decided to act differently in her on-court interview.
As he began to talk about his game, a largely incoherent interlocutor shouted something in the Serb's direction.
Novak Djokovic hilariously dealt with an interlocutor after his victory over Tomas Machac
The Serb beat the Czech star in straight sets, but faced some hostility from the crowd.
Djokovic's comments left the interviewer and those present at the Rod Laver Arena in stitches.
Instead of biting the barb, Djokovic calmly replied: “Sorry mate, I have a wife.” But we can have a drink… maybe you've already had a few.'
This left the interviewer in stitches, before Djokovic added: “Actually, he and I were going back and forth for quite a while.”
When jokingly asked if he would like to go on a date with the interlocutor, Djokovic continued to entertain the audience.
“Listen, I'm happy to have a drink with him,” he added. “Now that the game is over we can reflect very well on what we said to each other during the game.”
Djokovic's response was markedly different to Collins' on Thursday after he struggled with the boisterous Australian crowd.
Attacking the home fans for booing her in a post-match interview, the American said: “During the game I thought, as long as I'm here, I might as well take that big paycheck.
'We love five-star holidays, so a big chunk of that will go towards that. So thank you all, thank you for coming here and supporting us tonight. Thanks guys, I love you.”
Collins, who reached the final of the Australian Open in 2022, has already pocketed £147,000 ($180,000/AU$290,000) in prize money by reaching the third round.
Djokovic's comments come after Danielle Collins slapped the crowd on the butt.
The American boasted to fans that he had received a “big payday” upon reaching the third round.
Collins also blew kisses to her fans and said she would use her salary for a luxury vacation.
The tournament's tenth seed doubled down on her on-court comments in her press conference.
Collins said, 'Well, I'm going to be here for two hours, putting up with all these people, might as well take the bigger paycheck, right?'
“I was very happy to do that and one of the best things about being a professional athlete is that the people who don't like you and hate you actually pay your bills.”
“It's a cool concept and obviously my career isn't going to last forever and every day when I have that kind of thing going on, I remind myself that they're paying my bills.”
'Every person who bought a ticket and came here to interrupt me can do what they do. Everything will go to the bottom Danielle Collins. So, yeah, go ahead, I love it.
When asked about her vacation plans, Collins expressed her desire to have a luxury trip to a particular location.
'My friends and I love five-star holidays, so I can guarantee that the next check will go towards a five-star trip, hopefully to the Bahamas.
'We like boats. Big ships. We like yachts. Yes, we will publish it and tell you how it goes.”