Novak Djokovic is undoubtedly one of the best players ever and has raised tons of millions over the course of his amazing tennis career.
However, his path has not been without obstacles and difficulties. Back in those days, while Novak was playing on the junior circuit, they had no money to support his tennis and pay their on-tour expenses.
“I woke up every morning and didn’t know how to buy bread for us. But we had no support in Serbia. We have had many sleepless nights. The worry made me sick” Novak’s mother Dijana said in a recent interview with Blick.
“We had no choice. Srdjan (Novak’s father) knocked on thousands of doors to find a sponsor. He spoke to business people about whether they wanted to invest in Novak. But people didn’t hear. Too bad – they would probably have made millions today,” she added.
“Srdjan (Novak’s father) borrowed money from people doing illegal business. Of course, they wanted it back with high interest. He kept turning in circles. To pay off the debt, he had to borrow money again and again and again … The more the dealers felt how urgently we needed the money, the more they raised the interest rate,” she concluded.
Nole is the first Serbian player to be ranked No. 1 by the ATP and the first male player representing Serbia to win a Grand Slam singles title. He is a six-time ITF World Champion and a five-time ATP year-end No. 1 ranked player. Djokovic has won numerous awards, including the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year (four times).
“Novak Djokovic is My Favorite” – Boxing Legend Mike Tyson
American legend Mike Tyson labeled Roger Federer as greatest of all time. However, the undisputed world heavyweight champion hailed the World No.1 Novak Djokovic for his ability to bounce back from injuries that he suffered at regular interviews in his career.
The 17-time Grand Slam champion was affected by numerous injuries in his career. However, he suffered a potentially career-threatening injury as he took a six-month break in 2017 due to the elbow injury.
However, the Serb came back to the top of the game as he clinched his first Grand Slam title after more than two years at the 2018 Wimbledon Championships. Subsequently, he also returned to the top 10 in the ATP rankings.
“Novak Djokovic is a true fighter” – Mike Tyson
Djokovic won three back to back Major titles at the 2018 Wimbledon, 2018 US Open and 2019 Australian Open. Mike Tyson is highly impressed by Djokovic’s fighting spirit. Tyson explained that this attribute of Novak is what makes the latter his favorite tennis player.
“Novak Djokovic is my favorite at the moment. If he is okay, I really like to watch him. He is my favorite because the way he has come back from injury and beaten guys like Nadal and Federer is amazing. He is a true fighter,” said Tyson in an interview.
Novak Djokovic has clinched 7 of the last 5 Grand Slam titles, bringing his Grand Slam tally to 17. He is now just 2 Major titles behind his arch-rival Rafael Nadal and 3 behind Roger Federer’s all-time record.
He has been unbeatable in 2020 with an 18-0 win-loss record two months into the season before the tour came to a halt due to the coronavirus pandemic. Djokovic will certainly hope that the tour resumes soon and he is able to continue his winning momentum.
