Roger Federer once 'attacked' Novak Djokovic when he was a teenager, the Serbian star's dad has claimed without evidence

• Novak Djokovic's father says Roger Federer "attacked" the Serbian tennis star when he was a teenager.
• "As much as he is a great champion, Federer is not such a good man," he said.
• Srdjan Djokovic provided no evidence for the claim, and Federer has not yet publicly responded.

Novak Djokovic's father has made an extraordinary claim that Roger Federer "attacked" his son when he was just a teenager.

Srdjan Djokovic made the unsubstantiated accusation against Federer - who is six years older than Djokovic - in a recent interview with Serbian TV channel K1.

"About 15 years ago Federer attacked my son when he was still young, he was 18 or 19 years old," said Djokovic senior, per MARCA.

"I knew someone would be there who would be better than him. So I said that [Federer] was a great champion, the best at the time.

"But as much as he is a great champion, Federer is not such a good man."

No evidence was offered to substantiate Djokovic senior's claim, and he did not explain what he meant by the term "attack."

Federer has yet to publicly comment on the claims made by Srdjan Djokovic. Representatives for Federer did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Djokovic's claims by Insider.

In his Serbian TV interview, the 60-year-old went on to hit out at the media for what he believes are attempts to "defame" his son despite his incredible success on the court.

Djokovic has won 18 Grand Slam titles during his glistening career, two fewer than both Federer and Rafael Nadal.

"It is obvious that foreign media outlets do not have the best opinion of us and think that we are constantly bothering them," he said.

"To tell you the truth, I do not want to be part of your twisted world. I'm sorry you don't like Novak. I just tell you the truth. What should I do? They defame him so much and say so many disgusting things about him that it is unbelievable.

"My answers are much clearer compared to how they treat this great champion, that they won't have again in this world."

Djokovic has been involved in a number of off-court controversies in recent years, drawing scrutiny from the media in the process.

He notably came out as an anti-vaxxer during the first few months of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020. "Personally I am opposed to vaccination," Novak said in April 2020.

The younger Djokovic also drew scorn last summer when he was seen partying shirtless in a Serbian nightclub, ignoring social distancing and not wearing a mask.

He was then disqualified from the US Open after hitting a ball into the face of a line judge last September.

Most recently, he was criticized for his complaints about quarantine protocols put in place to keep players safe at the Australian Open in February.