Novak Djokovic, born May 22, 1987 in Belgrade, Serbia is a Serbian professional tennis player who, as of May 11, 2009, is ranked World No. 4.
He won his first Grand Slam singles title at the 2008 Australian Open. After beating World No. 1 and defending champion Roger Federer in the semifinals, Djokovic defeated Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in the final, 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 semifinals of all four Grand Slam events. He was the runner-up at the 2007 US Open and won the bronze medal in singles representing Serbia at the 2008 Olympic Games. He won the Tennis Masters Cup in 2008 and has won four Masters Series tournaments.
Djokovic was born May 22, 1987 in Belgrade, Serbia. He was born to Srdjan and Dijana and is the oldest of their three sons. His two younger brothers, Djordje and Marko, are also tennis players with professional aspirations. 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 twelve years old, he spent three years at Nikola Pilić’s tennis academy in Munich, Germany, and at age fourteen, his international career began, winning European championships in singles, doubles, and team competition. He currently resides in Monte Carlo, Monaco and is coached by a former Slovak tennis player, Marián Vajda.
Djokovic speaks Serbian, Italian and English fluently and often gives interviews and press conferences in all three. He also speaks a bit of German.
Djokovic 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.
Djokovic’s family purchased the ATP Tour date of the Dutch Open, which he had won in 2006, and moved the tournament to Belgrade, where it became the Serbia Open. His family also purchased the land on which a new clay court facility for the tournament was built.
Other Information
- Nickname(s) Nole,[1] The Djoker
- Country Serbia
- Residence Monte Carlo, Monaco
- Date of birth May 22, 1987
- Place of birth Belgrade, SR Serbia
- Height 1.87 m (6 ft 1+1⁄2 in)
- Weight 80 kg (176 lb; 12.60 st)
- Turned pro 2003
- Plays Right-handed; two-handed backhand
- Career prize money US$ 12,291,794
