At what cost does stardom come?

Beijing: One wonders to what extent, and at what price, would a sportsperson go to please fans. Like for example on Friday night here, former world number one Novak Djokovic won Chinese hearts when he wrote in Mandarin while signing off his name on the lens of a television camera.

The response on seeing Djokovic scribble ‘Chau De’ on the courtside camera lens had fans drooling with appreciation with ‘ahs’ and ‘yos’ and even some screeching.

While on the one hand this can only be good for the player in increasing his database of fans, it can also work in the other direction.

If not, take a look at what top player Roger Federer is going through. Now approaching the end of the season, Federer decided to travel to Shanghai for the Rolex Masters starting this weekend along with wife Mirka and his twin daughters. What welcome does he receive? A blogger — read that as an obsessed tennis fan — threatening to kill the world’s best player.

Federer landed in Shanghai on Friday and his entourage was whisked away by organisers through the VIP section of the airport and straight to the hotel. Federer can almost certainly play easy next week as organisers have called in local police to enhance the world number one’s security, along with better security for the other top players too.

There is no harm in Djokovic coming up with something innovative to make his fans happy, while at the same time converting some others on to his side. It’s perfectly legal and good for the sport, but that’s not how a fan could possibly look at the gesture.

So too for Federer. In his nearly two decades of top-class tennis, the Swiss ace has been suave and charming at most times and this could have worked against him.

Flashback to the final of the 2009 French Open and we all remember a fan who jumped onto the court and tried to make Federer wear a beret.

Or worse still, in 1993 when Monica Seles was stabbed in the back by a deranged fan who owed his allegiance to Steffi Graf.

No doubt, the sport has come closer to the fans since that incident, but the Federer episode should make the right people think where it should be headed.