Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 11:38, 30 January 2011

Novak Djokovic

Djokovic at the 2011 Hopman Cup
Country (sports)	Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006)  Serbia (2006-present)
Residence	Monte Carlo, Monaco
Height	1.88 m (6 ft 2 in)
Turned pro	2003
Plays	Right-handed (two-handed backhand)
Prize money	$20,262,956
Singles
Career record	324-105 (75.72%)
Career titles	19
Highest ranking	No. 2 (February 1, 2010)
Current ranking	No. 3 (October 18, 2010)
Grand Slam singles results
Australian Open	W (2008, 2011)
French Open	SF (2007, 2008)
Wimbledon	SF (2007, 2010)
US Open	F (2007, 2010)
Other tournaments
Tour Finals	W (2008)
Olympic Games	Bronze Medal (2008)
Doubles
Career record	28–38
Career titles	1
Highest ranking	No. 114 (November 30, 2009)
Grand Slam doubles results
Australian Open	1R (2006, 2007)
French Open	1R (2006)
Wimbledon	2R (2006)
US Open	1R (2006)
Last updated on: September 2, 2010.

Novak Djokovic

Medal record
Men's Tennis
Representing  Serbia
Olympic Games
	2008 Beijing	Singles

Novak Djokovic (Template:Lang-sr), pronounced [ˈnɔvɑk ˈdʑɔːkɔvitɕ] (born 22 May 1987) is a Serbian professional tennis player, who is currently ranked World No. 3 by the Association of Tennis Professionals (ATP).

He has won two Grand Slam singles titles, the 2008 and 2011 Australian Open championships, becoming the first player representing Serbia to win a Grand Slam singles title and the youngest player in the open era to have reached the semi-finals of all four Grand Slam events. In addition to being one of the few players that have defeated Roger Federer twice in Grand Slam tournaments, he is one of only two players to do so consecutively (the other being Rafael Nadal). He was also the runner-up at the 2007 and 2010 US Open tournaments (to Federer and Nadal, respectively), and a bronze medalist representing Serbia at the 2008 Olympic Games. In addition, Djokovic won the Tennis Masters Cup in 2008 and has won six Masters Series tournaments. In 2010, he led Serbia to win the Davis Cup. Djokovic finished the ATP Tour as World No. 3 for four consecutive years between 2007 and 2010 (behind Nadal and Federer). Djokovic's highest ranking to date is World No. 2, achieved in February 2010.

He is a double winner of the award The Best Sportperson of Serbia and award for The Best Sportsman by Olympic Committee of Serbia. He is considered to be the best Serbian tennis player in history, and one of the best to have ever come from the former Yugoslavia.

Biography

Novak "Nikhil" Djokovic was born in Belgrade, Serbia on 22 May 1987 to parents, Srdjan and Dijana Djoković. His two younger brothers, Đorđe and Marko, are also tennis players with professional aspirations. He has been in a relationship with fellow Serb and Belgrade native, Jelena Ristic for the past five years.

He started playing tennis at the age of four, and was spotted by Yugoslav tennis legend Jelena Genčić at the age of eight, who stated: "This is the greatest talent I have seen since Monica Seles." At 12 years old, he spent three months at Nikola Pilić's tennis academy in Munich, Germany, and at age 14, his international career began, winning European championships in singles, doubles, and team competition. He currently resides in Monte Carlo, Monaco and has been coached by a former Slovak tennis player, Marián Vajda; in August 2009 he also began working with former US top-five player Todd Martin.

Djoković is also known for his often humorous off-court impersonations of his fellow players, many of whom are his friends. This became evident to the tennis world after his 2007 US Open quarterfinal win over Carlos Moyà, where he entertained the audience with impersonations of Rafael Nadal and Maria Sharapova. He also did an impression of American tennis great John McEnroe after his final preliminary game at the 2009 US Open, before playing a brief game with McEnroe, much to the delight of the audience.

Tennis career

Early career

In the beginning of his professional career, Djoković mainly played in Futures and Challenger tournaments, winning three of each type from 2003 to 2005. His first tour level tournament was Umag in 2004, where he faced Filippo Volandri in the Round of 32, and lost 6-7(5), 1–6. He made his first grand slam appearance by qualifying for the 2005 Australian open where he met Marat Safin, as his first round opponent which he lost 6-0, 6-2, 6-1. Safin went on to win the tournament.

2006

The possibility for their entire 5-person family to move from Serbia to live in Britain involved immense dedication. All the rumours did not affect Djoković's play. He soon reached the top 40 world ranking due to a quarterfinal appearance at the French Open, and a fourth round appearance at Wimbledon.

Three weeks after Wimbledon, he won his maiden title at the Dutch Open in Amersfoort without losing a set, defeating Nicolás Massú in the final. Djoković won his second career title at the Open de Moselle in Metz, and moved into the top 20 for the first time in his career.

2007

Djoković began the year by winning the tournament in Adelaide, defeating Australian Chris Guccione in the final, before losing in the fourth round of the Australian Open to eventual champion Roger Federer in straight sets. His performances at the Masters Series events in Indian Wells, California and Key Biscayne, Florida, where he was the runner-up and champion respectively, pushed him into the world's top ten. Djokovic lost the Indian Wells final to Rafael Nadal, but defeated Nadal in Key Biscayne in the quarterfinals before defeating Guillermo Cañas for the title in the finals.

Djokovic played in the Masters Series Monte Carlo Open, where he was defeated by David Ferrer in the third round, and in the Estoril Open, where he defeated Richard Gasquet in the final. Djokovic then reached the quarter-finals of both the Internazionali d'Italia in Rome and the Masters Series Hamburg but lost to Nadal and Carlos Moyà respectively. At the French Open, Djokovic reached his first Grand Slam semifinal, losing to eventual champion Nadal.

During Wimbledon, Djokovic won a five-hour quarterfinal against Marcos Baghdatis 7–6 (4), 7–6 (9), 6–7 (3), 4–6, 7–5. In his semifinal match against Nadal, he was forced to retire with back and foot problems.

Djokovic went on to win the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Montreal. He defeated World No. 3 Andy Roddick in the quarterfinals, World No. 2 Nadal in the semifinals, and World No. 1 Federer in the final. This was the first time a player had defeated the top three ranked players in one tournament since Boris Becker in 1994. Djokovic was also only the second player, after Tomáš Berdych, to have defeated both Federer and Nadal since they became the top two players players in the world. After this tournament, Björn Borg stated that Djokovic "is definitely a contender to win a Grand Slam (tournament)." However, the following week at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio, Djokovic lost in the second round to Moyà in straight sets. Djokovic nevertheless reached the final of the US Open. Djokovic had five set points in the first set and two in the second set but lost them all before losing the final to top-seeded Federer in straight sets.

During the 2007 tournament, Djokovic emerged as a fan favorite with his on-court impressions of other players including Rafael Nadal, Andy Roddick, and Maria Sharapova

Djokovic won his fifth title of the year at the BA-CA TennisTrophy in Vienna, defeating Stanislas Wawrinka in the final. His next tournament was the Mutua Madrileña Masters in Madrid, where he lost to David Nalbandian in the semifinals 6–4, 7–6 (4). Djokovic, assured of finishing the year as World No. 3, qualified for the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup but did not advance beyond the round robin matches.

He received a golden badge, award for the best athlete in Serbia and Olympic Committee of Serbia has declared for the best sportsman.

2008

Djokovic started the year by playing the Hopman Cup along with fellow Serbian World No. 3 Jelena Janković. He won all his round-robin matches and the team, seeded first, reached the final. They lost 2–1 to the second-seeded American team consisting of Serena Williams and Mardy Fish.

At the Australian Open, Djokovic reached the final without dropping a set, including a victory over two-time defending champion Roger Federer in the semifinals, to reach his second Grand Slam final in a row; by reaching the semifinals, Djokovic became the youngest player to have reached the semifinals in all four grand slams. In the final, Djokovic then defeated unseeded Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga to earn Serbia's and his first ever Grand Slam singles title in four sets, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(2). This marked the first time since the 2005 Australian Open that a Grand Slam singles title was not won by Federer or Nadal.

Djokovic's next result was at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, lost in the semi-finals to Andy Roddick.

At the Masters Series Pacific Life Open in Indian Wells, California, Djokovic won his ninth career singles title, defeating American Mardy Fish in the three-set final.

Djokovic won his tenth career singles title and fourth Master Series singles crown at the Internazionali d'Italia in Rome. The following week at the Hamburg Masters, Djokovic lost to Nadal in the semi-finals. At the French Open in Paris, Djokovic was the third-seeded player behind Federer and Nadal. Djokovic lost to Nadal in the semifinals in straight sets.

On grass, Djokovic once again played Nadal, this time in the Artois Championships final in Queen's Club, London, losing 7–6(6), 7–5. At Wimbledon, Djokovic was the third seeded player; however, he lost in the second round to Marat Safin; this ended a streak of five consecutive grand slams where he had reached at least the semifinals.

Djokovic then failed to defend his 2007 singles title at the Masters Series Rogers Cup in Toronto. He was eliminated in the quarter-finals by eighth-seeded Andy Murray 6–3, 7–6(3). The following week at the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Ohio, Djokovic advanced to the final. In the final, he again lost to Murray in straight sets.

His next tournament was the Beijing Olympics, his first Summer Olympics. He and Nenad Zimonjić, seeded second in men's doubles, were eliminated in the first round by the Czech pairing of Martin Damm and Pavel Vízner. Seeded third in singles, Djokovic lost in the semifinals to Nadal, 6–4, 1–6, 6–4. Djokovic then defeated James Blake, the loser of the other semi-final, in the bronze medal match 6–3, 7–6(4).

After the Olympics, Djokovic entered the US Open as the third seed. Djokovic took several injury breaks during matches in the tournament prompting a quip from Andy Roddick that the serb has "16 injuries" including SARS, bird flu, and the common cold. He defeated Roddick in the quarterfinals, and in the post-match interview expressed disapproval with Roddick's comments, eliciting boos from the New York crowd. His run at the US Open ended in the semifinals when he lost to Federer 6–3, 5–7, 7–5, 6–2 in a rematch of the 2007 US Open final.

Djokovic played four tournaments after the US Open. In a rematch of the 2008 Australian Open final, he lost in the final of the Thailand Open to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in straight sets. In November, Djokovic was the second seed at the year-ending Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai due to Nadal being unable to participate. In his first round robin match, he defeated Argentine Juan Martín del Potro in straight sets. He then beat Nikolay Davydenko in three sets before losing his final round robin match against Tsonga 1–6, 7–5, 6–1. Djokovic qualified for the semi-finals, where he defeated Gilles Simon 4–6, 6–3, 7–5. In the final, Djokovic defeated Davydenko again to win his first ever Tennis Masters Cup title.

2009

Djokovic started the year at the Brisbane International in Brisbane, Australia, where he was upset by Ernests Gulbis in the first round. At the Medibank International in Sydney, he lost to Jarkko Nieminen in the semi-finals. Djokovic would have risen to World No. 2 had he won the match.

As defending champion at the Australian Open, Djokovic retired from his quarterfinal match with former World No. 1 Andy Roddick while he was trailing in the fourth set 6–7(3), 6–4, 6–2, 2–1, due to heat exhaustion, muscle cramps, and soreness. His retirement drew criticism from several players remaining in the tournament, including Roger Federer, who noted that Djokovic had now retired from matches in three of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

After losing in the semi-finals of the Open 13 tournament in Marseille to Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Djokovic won the singles title at the Barclays Dubai Tennis Championships, defeating David Ferrer to claim his twelfth career title. The following week, Djokovic was the defending champion at the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California, an ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, but lost to Roddick in the quarter-finals 6–3, 6–2. At the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, another ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, Djokovic beat Federer in the semi-finals 3–6, 6–2, 6–3 before losing to Andy Murray in the final.

Djokovic reached the final of the next ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters on clay, losing to Rafael Nadal in the final. At the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, another ATP World Tour Masters 1000 event, Djokovic was the defending champion, but again lost in the final after defeating Federer. This loss caused Djokovic's ranking to drop to World No. 4 on May 11, ending 81 consecutive weeks at the number 3 ranking.

Djokovic was the top seed at his hometown tournament, the Serbia Open in Belgrade. He defeated first-time finalist Łukasz Kubot to win his second title of the year. As third seed at the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open, Djokovic advanced to the semi-finals without dropping a set. There he faced Nadal for the third time in five weeks and, despite holding three match points, lost 3–6, 7–6(5), 7–6(9). The match, at 4 hours and 2 minutes, was the longest three-set singles match on the ATP World Tour in the Open Era. At the French Open, he lost in the third round to German Philipp Kohlschreiber 6–4, 6–4, 6–4.

Djokovic began his grass court season at the Gerry Weber Open where, after the withdrawal of Federer, he competed as the top seed. He advanced to the final, where he lost to German Tommy Haas. Djokovic also lost to Haas in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon 7–5, 7–6(6), 4–6, 6–3.

During the U.S. Open Series, Djokovic made the quarter-finals of the Rogers Cup in Montreal before losing to Andy Roddick 6–4, 7–6(4). The loss was his third of the year to Roddick. At the Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati, Djokovic defeated World No. 3 Rafael Nadal in the semi-finals, 6–1, 6–4, to reach his second consecutive final at the event. He lost in the final to World No. 1 Roger Federer 6–1, 7–5.

At the 2009 US Open, Djokovic made the semi-finals having dropping only two sets, defeating the likes of Ivan Ljubičić, 15th seed Radek Štěpánek and 10th seed Fernando Verdasco en route. He lost however to Roger Federer in the semis in a hard fought encounter, 7–6(3), 7–5, 7–5.

Djokovic then took part at the China Open in Beijing. He defeated Victor Hănescu, Viktor Troicki, Fernando Verdasco and Robin Söderling en route to the final, where he defeated Marin Čilić in straight sets, 6–2, 7–6 to win his third title of the year. Djokovic regained the World No. 3 ranking on October 19, as a result of his performance at this tournament, and Andy Murray's withdrawal from the 2009 Shanghai Masters. At the inaugural Shanghai ATP Masters 1000, Djokovic lost in the semi-finals to sixth seed and eventual champion Nikolay Davydenko 6–4, 4–6, 6–7(1) in just over 3 hours.

At the Davidoff Swiss Indoors in Basel, Djokovic recorded his first career double bagel, defeating Jan Hernych 6–0, 6–0, to make it to the quarter-finals. He then recovered from a set and break deficit to defeat Stanislas Wawrinka in the quarter-finals, 3–6, 7–6(5), 6–2. In the semi-finals, he saved three match points to defeat Radek Štěpánek 6–7(4), 7–5, 6–2. In the final, he defeated home favourite and three-time defending champion Roger Federer 6–4, 4–6, 6–2 to win his fourth title of the year. With this win, Djokovic remained a perfect 15-0 at ATP World 500 tournaments in 2009.

At the last Masters 1000 event of the year at the BNP Paribas Masters in Paris, Djokovic finally won his first Masters 1000 title of the year. He defeated Rafael Nadal 6–2, 6–3, in the semi-finals in 77 minutes hitting 31 winners en route. In the final, Djokovic held off several comebacks in the match from Gaël Monfils, eventually prevailing, 6–2, 5–7, 7–6(3).

Coming into the year ending ATP World Tour Finals in London as the defending champion, Djokovic defeated Nikolay Davydenko in his first round robin match, 3–6, 6–4, 7–5, extending his winning streak to 11 matches. His run was ended however in his second match, where a weary looking Djokovic lost to the first time in 6 career meetings to Robin Söderling 7–6(5), 6–1. Despite victory over Rafael Nadal 7–6(5), 6–3, in his final match, Djokovic failed to make the semi-finals due to his percentage of sets won being inferior to that of Davydenko in a three way tie between Söderling, Davydenko and Djokovic (all three having finished the round robin stage with a 2–1 win-loss record).

Djokovic ended the year as the World No. 3 for the third consecutive year. Djokovic played 97 matches through out the year, the most of any player on the ATP World Tour, with a 78–19 win-loss record. In addition to leading the ATP World Tour in match wins, he reached a career best 10 finals, winning 5 titles.

2010

Djokovic started his year by playing in the Kooyong Classic, an exhibition event. In his first match, he defeated Tommy Haas but lost to Fernando Verdasco in his second. Djokovic participated in an exhibition match against Australia's World No. 291 Bernard Tomic in which he lost.

At the Australian Open, Djokovic was eliminated in the quarter-finals by Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in five sets, 6–7(8), 7–6(5), 6–1, 3–6, 1–6, struggling with illness both before the match and from the fourth set onwards. Despite the loss, Djokovic attained a career-high ranking of World No. 2.

He reached the semis of the ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament in Rotterdam, losing to Mikhail Youzhny 6–7(5), 6–7(6), despite having set points in the second set tiebreak. At the Dubai Tennis Championships in U.A.E., Djokovic reached his second consecutive final at this event after beating all his opponents in 3 sets from the first round onwards. In the final, he defeated Russian Mikhail Youzhny winning, 7–5, 5–7, 6–3 to win his first title of the year. This was the first time in his career that Djokovic had defended a title.

He then took part in Serbia's Davis Cup tie against the USA on clay in Belgrade. He helped Serbia reach their first quarter-final in the Davis Cup 3–2 victory, defeating Sam Querrey in four sets, and John Isner in five sets.

Djokovic then took part in the first Masters 1000 events of the year in North America. At the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, he lost in the fourth round to the eventual champion Ivan Ljubičić 5–7, 3–6. At the Sony Ericsson Open in Miami, he suffered a shock loss, losing his opening match to Olivier Rochus 2–6, 7–6(7), 4–6. This was his first opening round defeat since losing to Fabrice Santoro at the 2007 BNP Paribas Masters. Djokovic then announced that he had ceased working with Todd Martin as his coach. He admitted that Martin had attempted to have him change his service motion, a tweaking of technique which caused him to routinely produce a high number of double faults in his matches and significantly reduced the threat on serve.

In his first clay-court tournament of the year at the Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, top seeded Djokovic reached the semi-finals with wins over Stanislas Wawrinka and in form David Nalbandian. There, he lost for the first time in his last five meetings to Fernando Verdasco, 2–6, 2–6. Djokovic again lost to Verdasco at the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome, this time in the quarter-finals, 6–7(4), 6–3, 4–6. Djokovic later said that his recent form had been hindered by allergies for the last two months.

As the defending champion at his hometown event, the Serbia Open in Belgrade, he withdrew in the quarter-finals while trailing 4–6 to the World No. 330, Filip Krajinović. He later announced his withdrawal from the Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open because of illness.

Djokovic entered the 2010 French Open seeded third. He defeated Evgeny Korolev, Kei Nishikori, Victor Hănescu and Robby Ginepri en route to the quarterfinals, where he lost to Jürgen Melzer in five sets 3–6, 2–6, 6–2, 7–6(3), 6–4. With Melzer serving for the match at 5–4 in the fifth set, Djokovic hit a cross-court forehand that would have given him a love-30 lead on the point. A late call confirmed by umpire Carlos Bernardes ruled it out, a call which Djokovic contested with Bernardes. Djokovic lost the point and the match. Later Hawk-Eye examination showed that Djokovic had been correct and the ball had indeed been in; it was the first time that Djokovic had lost a Grand Slam singles match after winning the first two sets.

Djokovic once again entered the 2010 Wimbledon Championships as third seed, he defeated Olivier Rochus, Taylor Dent, Alberto Montanes, Lleyton Hewitt, and Yen-Hsu Lu en route to the semi-finals, where he lost to Tomáš Berdych in straight sets, 6–3, 7–6, 6–3.

Djokovic then competed at the Rogers Cup in Toronto where he faced Roger Federer in the semifinals losing 6–1, 3–6, 7–5. Djokovic also competed in the doubles with Rafael Nadal in a one-time, high profile partnership. That was first time, after 1976. when Jimmy Connors and Arthur Ashe as World No.1 and No.2 paired up making a double dream team. However, they lost in the first round to Canadians Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil. Djokovic lost in the quarterfinals of the 2010 Western & Southern Financial Group Masters in Cincinnati to Andy Roddick.

As the 3rd seed at the US Open, Djokovic was very close to losing in the opening round, rallying from being down two sets to one down, a break in the fourth set and several break points which would have put him down two breaks in the fourth set to beat countryman Viktor Troicki in the midst of extreme heat. Djokovic eventually won 6–3, 3–6, 2–6, 7–5, 6–3. He would then defeat Philipp Petzschner, Americans James Blake and Mardy Fish, and number 17 seed Gaël Monfils all in straight sets to reach the US Open semifinals for the fourth consecutive year. In the semifinals, he faced Roger Federer, to whom he had lost the 2007 final and 2008 and 2009 semifinals. Very close to losing, Djokovic rallied to win 5–7, 6–1, 5–7, 6–2, 7–5, saving two match points at 5–4 down on his serve in the final set. The win ended a streak of four consecutive losses in Grand Slam semifinals. It was also Djokovic's first victory over Federer at the US Open in four attempts, and his first victory over Federer in a Grand Slam since the 2008 Australian Open. It also made him one of only two players to hold more than one victory over Federer in Grand Slam tournaments since Federer first became World number 1 (the other being Nadal). Djokovic lost to Nadal 4–6 7–5 4–6 2–6 in the final, a match that saw Nadal complete his career Grand Slam.

After helping Serbia defeat the Czech Republic 3-2 to make it to the Davis Cup final, Djokovic competed at the China Open as the top seed and defending champion. He won the title for the second successive year, after defeating Maoxin Gong, Mardy Fish (the American withdrew so this win is considered a "walkover"), Gilles Simon and John Isner en route to the final. Djokovic then defeated the eighth seeded Spaniard, David Ferrer in the final 6–2, 6–4.

At the Shanghai Masters, Djokovic made a semi-final appearance losing to Roger Federer 4–6, 5–7.

Djokovic played his final tournament of the year at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London. Djokovic was placed in Group A along with Rafael Nadal, Tomáš Berdych and Andy Roddick. Djokovic won his first round robin match against Berdych 6–3, 6–3. He next faced Nadal where he fell in straight sets 5–7, 2–6. Djokovic stated after the match he could barely see out of his right eye and at 4–4 in the first set Djokovic had to change his contact lenses. Throughout the match, Djokovic used three different types of contact lenses in the match to try to settle the problem. He defeated Roddick 6–2, 6–3 in his final round robin match and was safely through to the semi-finals, finishing second in the group to set up a mouth-watering clash with Roger Federer. He lost to eventual champion Federer 1–6, 4–6. Djokovic finished the year ranked World No. 3, his fourth successive finish at this position.

He was awarded the title "Serbian Sportsman of the year" by the Olympic Committee of Serbia and "Serbian Athlete of the year" by DSL Sport.

2011

In 2011 Djokovic started in the Australian Hopman Cup, then moved on to the 2011 Australian Open starting off with beating Marcel Granollers in the first round 6-1, 6-3, 6-1 then moved on to play Ivan Dodig defeating him in four sets of 7-5, 6-7(8), 6-0, 6-2. His Davis Cup teammate and close friend Viktor Troicki retired due to injury with Djokovic leading 6-2. In the 4th round he destroyed Nicolas Almagro of Spain again winning in straight sets 6-3, 6-4, 6-0. He avenged his defeat to Tomáš Berdych at the Wimbledon in the semi finals, winning 6-1, 7-6(5), 6-1. He then beat Roger Federer in straight sets 7-6(3), 7-5, 6-4 to reach the final, where he lost to Andy Murray 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 in his second Australian Open championship. In addition, on both occasions Djokovic only lost six set in the entire tournament, playing nearly flawless tennis.

Davis Cup

In 2006, Djokovic got the decisive win on April 9, 2006 against Great Britain by defeating Greg Rusedski in four sets in the fourth match, giving his team a 3–1 lead in their best of 5 series, thus keeping Serbia and Montenegro in the Group One Euro/African Zone of Davis Cup. Following this match-up a lot of media buzz appeared about Djokovic's camp negotiating with Tennis Lawn Association about changing his international loyalty by joining British tennis ranks. Nineteen-year-old Djokovic, who was #63 on the ATP list at the time, mostly dismissed the story at first by saying that the talks were not serious, describing them as "the British being very kind to us after the Davis Cup" However, more than 3 years later, in October 2009, Djokovic confirmed that the talks between his family and the LTA throughout April and May 2006 were indeed serious:

Britain was offering me a lot of opportunities and they needed someone because Andy was the only one, and still is. That had to be a disappointment for all the money they invest. But I didn’t need the money as much as I had done. I had begun to make some for myself, enough to afford to travel with a coach, and I said, ‘Why the heck?’ I am Serbian, I am proud of being a Serbian, I didn’t want to spoil that just because another country had better conditions. If I had played for Great Britain, of course I would have played exactly as I do for my country but deep inside, I would never have felt that I belonged. I was the one who took the decision.

Serbia since Montenegro gained independence in June 2006. By winning all three of his matches, Djokovic played a key role in the 2007 play-off win over Australia, promoting Serbia to World Group in 2008. In Serbia's tie against Russia in early 2008 in Moscow, Djokovic was sidelined due to influenza and was forced to miss his first singles match. He returned to win his doubles match, teaming with Nenad Zimonjić, before being forced to retire during his singles match with Nikolay Davydenko. Djokovic also had a big role in promoting Serbia to the 2009 World Group. On 6-8 Match 2010 he played the key role in bringing Serbia to World Group quarterfinals for the first time in its independent history, winning both singles matches in the home tie against United States (against Sam Querrey and John Isner). Later, Serbia progressed to the Davis Cup final, following the victories over Croatia (4-1) and Czech Republic (3-2). Serbia came from 1-2 down to defeat France in the final tie 3-2 in Belgrade to win the nation's first Davis Cup Championship. In the final, Djokovic scored two singles points for Serbia, defeating Gilles Simon and Gaël Monfils. He was the backbone of the Serbian squad, going 7-0 in singles rubbers to lead the nation to title.

Playing style and equipment

Djokovic is an all-court player with emphasis on defensive baseline play, having played more aggressively in the earlier years of his career. His greatest strengths are his groundstrokes, serve and defensive capabilities. He is consistent off both wings, although his double backhand is his preferred stroke. With considerable speed, his serve was one of his major weapons, winning many free points; his first serve was typically hit flat, while he preferred to slice his second serves wide. In 2009, he added Todd Martin to his coaching staff. Martin tried to change his service motion, resulting in Djokovic becoming one of the only players in the top 50 averaging more double faults than aces. Since then he has let Todd Martin go, and his old service motion is slowly returning. Darren Cahill has stated that Djokovic along with David Ferrer are the two best returners of serve in the men's game. With his length, flexibility and anticipation, Djokovic is able to return serves that any other player wouldn't get to. Djokovic is a better returner, when he returns serve off his backhand wing. He also utilizes consistent ball-bouncing before serves, as well as a well-disguised backhand underspin drop shot and sliced backhand. However, it becomes a flaw when he overuses the drop shot.

Djokovic uses Head rackets, utilizing the first Head YouTek™ Speed Pro racquet, after using Wilson until the end of 2008. In the Australian Open 2011 uses for the first time the new YouTek™ IG Speed MP 18/20 with Innegra™ fibre technology. Djokovic strings in a custom hybrid consisting of Tecnifibre X-One Biphase String in his mains (a type of synthetic gut), and natural gut in his crosses. At the end of 2009, he moved from adidas to Sergio Tacchini after signing a 10-year deal with the Italian clothing company, although he continues to endorse his signature Adidas ClimaCool Genius shoes. Djokovic has recently begun to wear Adidas' Barricade 6.0's Black/White.

Djokovic–Nadal rivalry

The pair have met 22 times and Nadal leads 15-7. Djokovic, however, has a great record on the hard court against Nadal in their matchups. The highlight of their rivalry so far was when Nadal just managed to eke out a victory in a hard fought, four hour best of three match at the 2009 Madrid Masters. Djokovic's most recent encounter with Nadal in a Grand Slam was in the final of the 2010 US Open where Djokovic was defeated in four sets. Djokovic also lost to Nadal in their previous three meetings in Grand Slam tournaments - the 2007 and 2008 French Open semi-finals, and the 2007 Wimbledon semi-finals. Their most recent meeting was at the 2010 World Tour Finals, where Nadal once again defeated Djokovic.

Djokovic–Federer rivalry

These two have met 20 times in four years: Federer leads the head to head 13-7. Djokovic's biggest win over Federer was at the 2008 Australian Open where Djokovic defeated Federer in the semi-finals in straight sets on his way to the title, ending Federer's streak of ten consecutive Grand Slam finals. Djokovic's most recent victory over the Swiss was at the 2011 Australian Open defeating Federer 7-6(3), 7-5, 6-4. He also defeated Federer in an epic 5-set match at the 2010 US Open 5-7, 6-1, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5, saving two match points in the decider. Federer has beaten Djokovic in the fourth round at the 2007 Australian Open, the final of the 2007 US Open, and the semifinals of the 2008 US Open and 2009 US Open.

Grand Slams

Grand Slam performance timeline

To prevent confusion and double counting, information in this table is updated only once a tournament or the player's participation in the tournament has concluded. This table is current through the 2010 US Open.

Grand Slam Finals

Singles: 4 (2 titles, 2 runner-ups)

Outcome	Year	Championship	Surface	Opponent in the final	Score in the final
Runner-up	2007	US Open	Hard	Roger Federer	6–7(4), 6–7(2), 4–6
Winner	2008	Australian Open	Hard	Jo-Wilfried Tsonga	4–6, 6–4, 6–3, 7–6(2)
Runner-up	2010	US Open (2)	Hard	Rafael Nadal	4–6, 7–5, 4–6, 2–6
Winner	2011	Australian Open (2)	Hard	Andy Murray	6-4, 6-2, 6-3

Career Statistics

In popular culture

Djokovic was a special guest in the first semi-final of Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade. He threw a big tennis ball into the crowd, announcing the start of voting. Together with presenter of the show, Željko Joksimović was sung a song about Belgrade.

The music video for the song Hello by Martin Solveig and Dragonette was recorded at Stade Roland Garros where Solveig faces Bob Sinclar, another DJ, in a tennis match. The referee says Out; Djokovic enters the arena and convinces the referee otherwise.

See also

• Tennis performance timeline comparison (men)
• Serbia Davis Cup team

References

1. "Current ATP Rankings (singles)". atpworldtour.com. Association of Tennis Professionals.
2. "Roger Federer vs. Novak Djoković Australian Open Preview". Retrieved 2008-01-24.
3. Novak Djokovic official website
4. MacPherson, Paul (2007-09-10). "Joker in the Pack Holds All the Aces". DEUCE Magazine, summer 2007. Retrieved 2008-01-31.
5. ^ "The Official Internet Site of Novak Djoković: Biography". Retrieved 2008-07-19.
6. "ITF Tennis - Mens Circuit - Player Biography". Retrieved 2007-08-14.
7. MacPherson, Paul (2007-09-10). "Joker in the Pack Holds All the Aces". DEUCE Magazine, summer 2007. Retrieved 2007-09-12.
8. ^ Hodgkinson, Mark (2006-05-17). "Serbian may join British ranks". London: Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2007-08-13.
9. "Borg: 'Djokovic can win a Grand Slam'". BlackRock Tour of Champions. 2007-08-13. Archived from the original on 2007-09-29. Retrieved 2007-08-13.
10. Olimpijski komitet Srbije
11. Hodgkinson, Mark (2008-01-27). "Novak Djokovic wins Australian Open". The Daily Telegraph. London.
12. Djokovic says he doesn’t deserve to be called a quitter
13. "Novak Djokovic Player Profile". ATP World Tour. 2009-05-11. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
14. "Djokovic wins Serbia Open final". BBC Sport. 2009-05-10. Retrieved 2009-05-11.
15. "Haas beats Djokovic to win title". BBC Sport. BBC. 2009-06-14. Retrieved 2009-06-20.
16. "Haas stuns Djokovic to make semis". BBC Sport. 2009-07-01. Retrieved 2009-07-01.
17. "Federer secures Cincinnati title". BBC Sport. 2009-08-23. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
18. "Federer & Del Potro into US final". BBC Sport. 2009-09-13. Retrieved 2009-09-28.
19. "Djokovic beats Cilic in Beijing". BBC Sport. 2009-10-11. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
20. "Djokovic gets first career double bagel, beats Hernych at Swiss Indoors". Associated Press. 2009-11-09. Retrieved 2009-10-12.
21. "Djokovic beats Federer in final". BBC Sport. 2009-11-08. Retrieved 2009-11-09.
22. "In-Form Djokovic Cruises Past Nadal, Reaches 10th Final Of Year". atpworldtour.com. 2009-11-14. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
23. "Djokovic wins superb Paris final". BBC Sport. 2009-11-08. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
24. "Djokovic edges past Davydenko". BBC Sport. 2009-11-23. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
25. "Robin Soderling beats Novak Djokovic to reach semis". BBC Sport. 2009-11-25. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
26. "Novak Djokovic beats Nadal but is knocked out of Finals". BBC Sport. 2009-11-27. Retrieved 2009-11-28.
27. "Djokovic results at AAMI classic 2010". 14 January 2010. Retrieved 14 January 2010.
28. "Djokovic blames illness". 28 January 2010. Retrieved 28 January 2010.
29. http://www.atpworldtour.com/News/Tennis/2010/02/4th-Week/Dubai-Saturday-Djokovic-Leads-Final.aspx
30. "Djokovic Admits That Martin Messed Up His Serve". 12 April 2010. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
31. "Novak Djokovic beaten in Rome by Fernando Verdasco". BBC News. 30 April 2010. Retrieved 8 May 2010.
32. Novak Djokovic Pulls Out Of Madrid Masters
33. Serena and Djokovic narrowly out
35. http://www.oks.org.rs/2010/12/proglaseni-najuspesniji-u-2010-oj/
36. http://www.novosti.rs/vesti/sport.72.html:312746-Sport-Najbolji-Djokovic-i-sestre-Moldovan
37. "Djokovic dismisses British links. Novak Has also won the 2011 Australin Open". BBC.co.uk. 2006-06-04. Retrieved 2009-10-16.
38. Harman, Neil (2009-10-16). "Why Novak Djokovic said no to Great Britaine". London: TimesOnLine.co.uk. Retrieved 2009-10-16.
39. "Serbia wins first Davis Cup title". ESPN. 2010-12-64. Retrieved 2010-12-06. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
40. ^ "Djole's Frames of Mind". Retrieved 2009-03-03.
41. ^ Cooper, Jeff. "Novak Djokovic - Game Profile". Retrieved 2008-05-20. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help)
42. "Novak Djokovic's Drop Shot". Retrieved 2008-09-16.

External links

• Official site Template:En icon
• Official site Template:Sr icon
• Novak Djokovic at the Association of Tennis Professionals
• {{ITF profile}} template using deprecated numeric ID.
• Novak Djokovic at the Davis Cup
• Novak Djokovic at Flickr--turn pro until now

Awards
Preceded byRafael Nadal	ATP Most Improved Player 2006 2007	Succeeded byJo-Wilfried Tsonga
Preceded byOlivera Jevtić	The best athlete of Serbia 2007	Succeeded byMilorad Čavić
Preceded byNađa Higl	The best athlete of Serbia 2010	Succeeded byIncumbnet

Template:Top Serbian Male Tennis Players

v t e Awards of Olympic Committee of Serbia
Sportsman of The Year	1994: Stevan Pletikosić 1995: Aleksandar Đorđević 1996: Vladimir Grbić 1997: Nikola Grbić 1998: Dejan Bodiroga 1999: Nedeljko Jovanović 2000: Vladimir Grbić 2001: Aleksandar Šoštar 2002: Dejan Bodiroga 2003: Milorad Čavić 2004: Aleksandar Šapić 2005: Vladimir Vujasinović 2006: Nikola Stojić 2007: Novak Djokovic 2008: Milorad Čavić 2009: Milorad Čavić 2010: Novak Djokovic 2011: Novak Djokovic 2012: Andrija Prlainović 2013: Novak Djokovic 2014: Novak Djokovic 2015: Novak Djokovic 2016: Filip Filipović 2017: Milenko Zorić & Marko Tomićević 2018: Novak Djokovic 2019: Novak Djokovic 2020: Novak Djokovic 2021: Filip Filipović 2022: Zurabi Datunashvili 2023: Novak Djokovic
Sportswoman of The Year	1994: Jasna Šekarić 1995: Jasna Šekarić 1996: Aleksandra Ivošev 1997: Jasna Šekarić 1998: Olivera Jevtić 1999: Olivera Jevtić 2000: Jasna Šekarić 2001: Jelena Dokić 2002: Mara Kovačević 2003: Silvija Erdelji 2004: Jasna Šekarić 2005: Jasna Šekarić 2006: Olivera Jevtić 2007: Jelena Janković 2008: Jelena Janković 2009: Nađa Higl 2010: Zorana Arunović 2011: Jovana Brakočević 2012: Milica Mandić 2013: Ivana Španović 2014: Nikolina Moldovan 2015: Ivana Španović 2016: Tijana Bogdanović 2017: Milica Mandić 2018: Tijana Bošković 2019: Tijana Bošković 2020: Bobana Veličković 2021: Jovana Preković 2022: Ivana Vuleta 2023: Ivana Španović
Men's Team of The Year	1995: Basketball team 1996: Basketball team 1997: Basketball team 1998: Basketball team 1999: Handball team 2000: Voleyball team 2001: Water polo team 2002: Basketball team 2003: Water polo team 2004: Water polo team 2005: Water polo team 2006: Water polo team 2007: Water polo team 2008: Water polo team 2009: Water polo team 2010: Voleyball team 2011: Water polo team 2012: Water polo team 2013: Voleyball team 2014: Basketball team 2015: Water polo team 2016: Water polo team 2017: Water polo team 2018: 3x3 basketball team 2019: Voleyball team 2021: Water polo team 2022: 3x3 basketball team 2023: 3x3 basketball team
Women's Team of The Year	1995: Shooting team 1996: Karate club "Soko Štark" 1997: Karate club "Knjaz Miloš" 1998: Handball club "Budućnost" 1999: Chess team 2001: Handball team 2005: Junior basketball team 2006: Volleyball team 2007: Volleyball team 2008: Volleyball team 2009: Volleyball team 2010: Volleyball team 2011: Volleyball team 2012: Fed Cup team 2013: Handball team 2015: Basketball team 2016: Volleyball team 2017: Volleyball team 2018: Volleyball team 2019: Volleyball team 2021: Volleyball team 2022: Volleyball team 2023: Volleyball team
Team Sport Athlete of The Year	2022: Tijana Bošković 2023: Strahinja Stojačić
Young Athlete of The Year	2010: Velimir Stjepanović 2011: Uroš Kovačević 2012: Dušan Mandić 2013: Andrija Šljukić 2014: Nemanja Majdov 2015: Tijana Bogdanović 2016: Nikola Jakšić 2017: Tijana Bošković 2018: Nadica Božanić 2019: Ivana Perović 2020: Matija Dinić 2021: Adriana Vilagoš 2022: Adriana Vilagoš 2023: Angelina Topić
Coach of The Year	2009: Dejan Udovičić 2010: Marián Vajda 2011: Marián Vajda 2012: Dragan Jović 2013: Saša Bošković 2014: Dragan Plavšić 2015: Dejan Savić 2016: Dejan Savić 2017: Dragan Jović 2018: Zoran Terzić 2019: Slobodan Kovač 2020: Jasna Šekarić 2021: Dragan Jović 2022: Dragan Jović 2023 Goran Obradović

Template:Persondata

Template:Link GA Template:Link FA

• 1987 births
• Living people
• Male tennis players
• People from Belgrade
• People from Monte Carlo
• Serbian expatriates in Monaco
• Serbian male tennis players
• Olympic bronze medalists for Serbia
• Olympic tennis players of Serbia
• Australian Open (tennis) champions
• Tennis players at the 2008 Summer Olympics