Novak Djokovics Biography

He was born on May 22 1987 in Belgrade, Serbia.

1991.
1991
Novak Djokovic took a racquet in his hands for the first time when he was four
years old. It was summer, and one of the best tennis coaches Jelena Gencic,
was holding a training camp. Every day Novak came by and watched the
trainings. Then, one day, Jelena invited him on court. He accepted, and started
playing tennis.
I knew he would become a champion. It was crystal clear to me. He was
focused, conscientious, and above all, talented. Jelena Gencic
Although he enjoyed skiing, and even football, it was tennis that won him over
as well as Pete Sampras whose game on the court Novak fully absorbed.
It was destiny. If something in your life is meant to be, then its meant to be!
Novak Djokovic
1999.
1999
While still in elementary school, instead of staying in schoolyard to play with
other kids, Novak was running back home to get ready for his tennis sessions.

Rain, snow or holidays nothing could have stopped him from hitting balls with
his tennis coach, Jelena. In one moment, when he made an enormous move
forward, Jelena advised Novaks parents: If you want him to keep progressing,
he has to leave the country.
At that time, a difficult economic and political situation was looming over Serbia.
The decision to let Novak move to Germany was difficult, but it was the only
logical thing to do. As a 13-year-old boy, Novak went to Munich, to train at the
academy run by renowned tennis coach Nikola Pilic.
From the first day Novak arrived to the camp it was amazing how focused on
tennis he was. I never liked predicting if someone would succeed or not, but
with Novak I knew he would be the best. Nikola Pilic
During the next four years, Novak traveled from Serbia to Niki Pilic Tennis
Academy to practice. The first year he went to Germany he stayed there for two
months, then the next three months he was back at home in Serbia, and then
again he went back to Germany for a month. Going back and forth as a way of
living went on for some time until he started achieving great results on the
court.
2001.

2001
Golden year for, at that time, 14-year-old Novak. He ended the year as a triple
European champion in singles, doubles and in team competition while also
winning the silver medal at the World Junior Championship in a team
competition for Yugoslavia.
2002.

2002

Novak Djokovic became the European champion in a category under 16 years.

He won prestigious tournaments such as: La Boule and La Poet in France,
Princes Cup in Miami under 18, as well as ITF tournament in Pancevo, where
he beat rivals who were up to three years older than him.
After five ITF tournaments he played, Novak became 40th best junior tennis
player in the world.
2003.

2003
The season began for Novak with the finals at the ITF tournament in Nurnberg.
Djokovic then went on to win another gold medal for his country. In the French
city of Latne he competed together with his teammates, under the leadership of
a team captain Jovan Lilic, and became Europes best player under 16 years.
Novak won six out of six matches he played.
This year was a special year in Novaks professional life. He also earned his
first ATP points by winning at the Futures tournament hosted by tennis club
Red Star.
2004.

2004
He played for the first time for a national Davis Cup team in a tie against Latvia.
At that time he was ranked 606. He won a point for Serbia and Montenegro by
winning against Janis Skroderis.
Novak won his first ATP Challenger tournament in Budapest, where he started
as a qualifier. He triumphed in Serbia F5 futures tournament and another ATP
challenger event in Aachen, Germany.

Novak Djokovic finished the season 04 as 184th player on the ATP list.
2005.
2005
Year in which Novak turned his focus on playing bigger ATP events. In
Australia, he qualified for the first time to play in the main draw of a Grand
Slam. Later that year, he won another ATP challenger event in San Remo, after
which he won his first round match on Roland Garros. He also qualified on
Wimbledon and reached 3rd round. These experiences helped him to move up
the rankings and he entered for the first time top 100. He reached 3rd round on
US Open.
In Paris Bercy, on his last tournament of the year, he beat Mariano Puerta, at
that time the 9th player in the world, and reached the third round. This enabled
him to finish the season ranked as 78th.
2006.

2006
He won his first ATP tournament in the Dutch city of Amersfoort, from which his
family, later on, bought the ATP licence for holding Serbia open tournament in
Belgrade. Immediately after that Novak took another title in Metz. This allowed
him to become the youngest player in the top 20.
Novak Djokovic also played his first ever Grand Slam quarterfinal that year at
Roland Garros. He finished the season ranked 16th in the world.
In the middle of the year he started working with tennis coach Marian Vajda
from Slovakia.
2007.

2007
Season of Novaks great success started by winning a title in Adelaide.
Novak played quarter-finals in Australian Open, semi-finals in Rotterdam, finals
in the US open and Indian Wells, which brought him to top 10. It was in Miami
where he finally broke the reign of the two rivals, Roger Federer and Rafael
Nadal. When he beat Nadal, Murray and Canas, and became the youngest
player who conquered Key Biscayne, the entire tennis world realized that the
new champion has come to the stage.
Few weeks later he won the Estoril tournament. He played semi-finals of
Roland Garros and Wimbledon, and started the American tour by winning his
second masters title in Montreal, beating the top three players on the way to the

title: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Andy Roddick. This trophy led him to
number 3 in the world, which he held for 91 consecutive weeks true tennis
record.
At the US Open he made his first Grand Slam final, where he lost to Roger
Federer.
Later that season Novak secured Serbias historic place in the World group of
Davis Cup competition, after which he won his 5th title in 2007, in Vienna.
2008.

2008
Novak won his first Grand Slam title the Australian open, beating Jo Wilfried
Tsonga in the finals and losing only one set throughout the whole tournament.
After that success, he won another three big trophies Masters tournaments in
Indian Wells, Rome, and Shanghai (Masters Cup).
Novak also won the bronze medal for his country on the Olympic games held in
Beijing.
2009.

2009
Year of great achievements ten ATP finals and five titles: Dubai, Beijing,
Basel, and Paris. However, Novaks certainly most cherished title is the one he

won in his hometown, Belgrade, where the first ever ATP tournament in Serbia
was held.
Djokovic was runner-up in Cincinnati, Rome, Monte Carlo, Miami and Halle, but
these tournaments contributed for Novak to finish this season as number 3 in
the world, coming closer to No. 2 bridge to dream comes true.
2010.

2010
He climbed to the number 2 spot in ATP rankings, defended the title from
Dubai, won the tournament in Beijing and reached semi-finals of Wimbledon
and finals of US Open.
The most memorable moment of the season and the turning point in Novaks
career was the group effort of Serbian national team to clench the Davis Cup
trophy for Serbia for the first time in history. Novak, Viktor Troicki, Janko
Tipsarevic and Nenad Zimonjic, led by team captain Bogdan Obradovic, beat
USA that year, as well as Croatia, Czech Republic and France, becoming the
World champions. It was the greatest success of the Serbian team tennis in the
history.
As a confirmation of Novaks enduring and devoted work, as well as his
undeniable talent, the year of 2011 arrived. It was just a matter of time when
the golden year would happen.
2011.

2011
Novak Djokovic had an impressive winning streak 43 matches won in a row.
There is no active player in the world that managed to achieve such a run. In
his best shape, Novak arrived to London, at Wimbledon.
There and then, in a span of just several days he fulfilled his childhood dreams.
At the same time he lifted the Wimbledon trophy, and became the number one
tennis player in the world,
I still think this is all a dream Novak Djokovic at the magnificent reception in
Belgrade, where 100.000 fans greeted him.
That year he had impressive score against top 10 players, won 5/6 Master
Series finals, won most titles at Masters 1000 tournaments in one season (5),
most consecutive wins at Masters tournaments (31).
After London, Novak stepped up even faster: he won Montreal, and then US
open his fourth Grand Slam trophy.
2012.
2012
Novak began this season in a convincing manner at Australian open, where he
first prevalied over Andy Murray in a tough semi final match that lasted 4 hours
and 50 minutes. Then he won against Rafael Nadal in the finals, in the
encounter, which went on for six hours. It was the longest final match in the
Grand Slam history (5 hours and 53 minutes).
Novak received the Sportsman of the Year Laureus Award the most
prestigious sports award voted by the Academy consisting of the biggest sport
legends of all time.
The Republic of Serbia awarded him the top state honor in the country,
Karadjordjeva Star Medal, for special merits and success in representing
Serbia.

Novak won Miami without losing a set he beat Murray in the finals. With this
success he joined Agassi and Sampras as the only players who won this
tournament for three or more times. Furthermore, it was his 30th title in career,
and 11th Masters Series title.
In April, Novak was named one of TIME Magazines Top 100 most influential
people in the world, following a phenomenal year in which he displaced Federer
and Nadal at the top of the mens game.
Clay court season followed, with Nole playing finals in Monte Carlo, Rome and
for the first time in his career at Roland Garros.
At the end of May, Novak was appointed a global brand Ambassador of one of
the worlds most prestigious brands, the Japanese clothing and sports
equipment manufacturer UNIQLO.
Nole maintained his standing atop the ATP Rankings for an entire year, putting
together the fourth-longest run at no.1 since making his debut at the top
position. He was stopped in attempt to defend his Wimbledon title, falling to
eventual champion Roger Federer in the semi-finals.
After the third Grand Slam of the season, Nole won the ESPY Best Male Tennis
Player award for achievements in the past calendar year.
At the London 2012 Olympics, Novak was a flag bearer for Serbia. In the
bronze medal match he lost to Juan Martin Del Potro, finishing 4th.
He successively defended his Rogers Cup title beating Richard Gasquet 6-3, 62 to lift the Canadian Masters trophy for the third time, and then finished runnerup in Cincinnati for the fourth time in five years.
Djokovic reached his third consecutive US Open final at Flushing Meadows. He
fell to Andy Murray in five sets in the title match.
Two days after the USO, Novak Djokovic Foundation raised $1,400,000 for
children at inaugural benefit dinner held in New York.

Novak compiled a perfect 10-0 record clinching back-to-back titles in Asia, and
by winning the Shanghai Rolex Masters, he became the first player to win
seven of nine current Masters 1000 events. He saved five match points before
defeating two-time defending champion Andy Murray, 5-7, 7-6 (11), 6-3 in a
blockbuster final.
Nole reclaimed the world no.1 ranking on November 5.
He was awarded two exceptional honours for 2012 season: Arthur Ashe
Humanitarian of the Year, which acknowledges outstanding humanitarian
contribution, and ATP World Tour No.1 award (determined by South African
Airways ATP Rankings).
On November 12, he won the 2012 ATP World Tour Finals by defeating Roger
Federer 7-6 (6), 7-5 in a dramatic final of the season-ending event in London.
The Serbian star clinched the year-end no.1 ranking for a second straight year.
He is the first player to finish no.1 in back-to-back seasons since Roger Federer
from 2004-07 and the ninth player to accomplish the feat since 1973.
2013.

2013
Novak made history on January 27, 2013, by becoming the first man in the
Open Era to win three successive Australian Open titles! He defeated no.3
seed Andy Murray 6-7 (2), 7-6 (3), 6-3, 6-2 and added the victory to his
triumphs in 2008, 2011 and 2012 to tie the Open Era record for most titles in

Melbourne with Agassi and Federer (4). Nole captured his 35th career trophy
and sixth Grand Slam championship.
Nole continued his run of form in Dubai, where he won his fourth Dubai Duty
Free Championships crown. He beat no.3 seed Czech Tomas Berdych in the
final 7-5, 6-3.
Novak ended Rafael Nadals eight-year reign in Monte Carlo when he beat him
in the finals 6-2, 7-6 (1) to win his first title at the ATP World Tour Masters 1000
clay court event, and became the only player to capture eight different Masters
crowns.
Nole won a record fourth China Open title with a 6-3, 6-4 victory over Rafael
Nadal in the finals of the ATP World Tour 500 event in Beijing. A week later,
Djokovic won his 15th ATP World Tour Masters 1000 trophy and second
Shanghai Masters crown beating Juan Martin del Potro 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 (3) in the
final.
Nole became the 15th player in the Open Era to win 40 ATP titles, when he
beat David Ferrer 7-5, 7-5 in the BNP Paribas Masters final.
By defending his crown at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals (b.Nadal 6-3, 64), Novak became the seventh player who won the year-end championship at
least three times.
In late December Novak captured his third Mubadala World Tennis
Championship in a row, ousting David Ferrer in straight sets 7-5, 6-2. The ATP
world no.2 maintained his unbeaten record in Abu Dhabi and became the first
player to win three crowns.
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4.
2014
Novak lifted his first trophy in 2014 in Indian Wells, winning the ATP World Tour
Masters 1000 event for the third time. He beat Roger Federer in the final 3-6, 63, 7-6 (3).
Two weeks later, Novak became just the second player to win the Indian WellsMiami title double for a second time. He beat Rafael Nadal in the final (6-3, 6-3)
to capture his fourth Sony Open Tennis crown.
Nole won his third Rome Masters title and 19th Masters 1000 trophy beating
Rafael Nadal in the Internazionali BNL dItalia final 4-6, 6-3, 6-3.
In his second Roland Garros final, Novak fell to Rafa 6-3, 5-7, 2-6, 4-6.
On July 6, Novak beat seven-time Wimbledon titlist Roger Federer 6-7(7), 6-4,
7-6(4), 5-7, 6-4 in spectacular final to win his second Championships crown.
With seven Grand Slam titles to his name, Djokovic surpassed Stefan Edberg
and Boris Becker and moved alongside the likes of John McEnroe and Mats
Wilander on the list of all-time grand slam winners.
Novak reclaimed the no.1 spot in the ATP Rankings on July 7, starting his
102nd week at world no. 1.
On October 5, Novak won the China Open for a fifth time with an impressive 60, 6-2 victory over Tomas Berdych. The top seed displayed masterclass
performance remaining invincible at the ATP 500 event with a perfect 24-0
record.
Novak claimed his 600th match victory and 20th ATP World Tour Masters 1000
crown with a 6-2, 6-3 win over Milos Raonic in the BNP Paribas Masters final,

becoming the fifth active player to reach the milestone (joins Federer, Nadal,
Hewitt and Ferrer).
Novak claimed his fourth Barclays ATP World Tour Finals title as Roger Federer
withdrew ahead of final due to a back injury. He is the first player to win three
straight season finale titles since Ivan Lendl from 1985-87. The only other
player was Ilie Nastase from 1971-73.
Novak has also clinched year-end no.1 spot for the third time in four years!
Just believe in your dreams. If you have dreams, dont give up. Belief is the
most common word to me, even more than hope. For one, to achieve his
dreams, he needs to truly believe in them.
Novak Djokovic