Novak Djokovics Rise to Greatness

The Worlds Number 1s Remarkable Story

You see his face all the time. Djokovic, worlds number 1 tennis player, bane of Rafael Nadal, champion of ATP tennis today. But everyone in the ATP started out as nothing more than a student with exceptional talent and enough money in their families for their families to send them to tennis camps, or expensive coaches. But this player from wartorn Serbia, which has little tennis tradition and few courts, still became number 1.

ovak Djokovic was born on May 22nd, 1987 in Belgrade, Serbia. He begins to take interest and learn the game in hard courts by his familys restaurant. His family however did not express either disapproval or approval since they had limited knowledge of the game and none played it, instead focusing on the family tradition of skiing. Upon seeing Djokovic practice one day, however, the famous legend Jelena Gencic, who once taught former World Number 1 Womens Tennis Player Monica Seles, pronounced him talented. She quickly begins to follow his progress eventually sending him off to Niki Pilics, a former Croatian Pro, tennis camp. He spent three months in Munich, Germany steadily improving his game, getting better. Jelena Gencic would comment Hes a natural. Little did she know that soon, everyone would say the same thing about him. He began to climb junior rankings quickly. When he was 14, in 2001, he finished as the European champion (singles, doubles, and team), and later won gold at San Remo that year. The following seasons, he continued winning big matches and continued growing in fame. He won the prestigious La Boule and La Poet tournaments in France as well as the very big Princes Cup in Miami. In the ITF tournament in Pancevo, where he played in the Under 18 age division, he beat players with much more training and much older than him. He eventually becomes the 40th best junior player in the world. 2003 yields very good results as well, especially during his appearance at the final at Numberg ITF Tournament, though he was unable to finish due to an injury. He then went on to win another gold medal for Serbia, and eventually he plays his first professional tennis match when he was selected to be part of the Davis Cup, in the games against Ivory Coast and the Bulgarian team. In the Futures tournament, he beat fourth seed, winning his first ATP point, and eventually winning the title itself. A week after entering the ATP World Tour (professional tennis), he instantly jumped over the bottom half of the ATP players in terms of rankings. He won the national tournament in the under 18 age group, soon followed by the title of National Senior Champion, which he won with the Serbian Team.

DJOKOVICS SPORTY FAMILY Djokovics family is also a family of sportsmen and women, although they are a family of skiers. Djokovics dad, Sr an Djokovic, was a skier who skied in Zvecane, where he completed the skiing academy there, and he began to teach at the prestigious Genex school in Kopaonik. Djokovics mother was also an instructor and accomplished skier at the same academy. Marko, the elder of Djokovics two younger brothers, already plays tennis after being coached by Djokovics so called lifechanger Jelena Gencic, already plays in the ATP Doubles Tour, having beaten the worlds number 2 doubles tennis team. His youngest brother Djordje Djokovic has also chosen a profession of tennis, following the example of both his brothers, and he is currently still receiving training.

In 2005, he successfully qualified for Grand Slam tournaments in the cities of Melbourne, Australia, Paris and London. Following all these tournaments, he entered the main draw in a tournament in New York, where he reached the third round. After this tournament, he moved up to number 80 in the world (professional tennis). In 2006, he won his first ATP tournament in Amersfort, then immediately won another title at Metz and played his first ever Grand Slam quarter-final at Roland Garros (the French Open). This bumped him up to number 16 in the world. Finally, the Era of the Djoker begins to unravel in the year 2007. In the first week of the 2007 series, Novak was victorious in the Australian summer season and then soon reached semifinals in Rotterdam, which is when his ranking began to increase again and his career was beginning to take off. After reaching the finals at Indian Wells, he won his first every Masters Title in Miami. He won the tournament in Montreal beating Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Andy Roddick on the way to winning the title, which began building up his confidence to play the top players. After that, he appeared in the final of the US Open, although he lost to Roger Federer. He made up for it big time by winning his first ever Grand Slam Title, the Australian Open in 2008! After that, he won Master Tournaments in Indian Wells and Rome, while winning the Masters Cup in Shanghai.

DJOKOVICS SECRET TO FIXING HIS STAMINA A PRESSURIZED SPACE EGG?

Djokovics credits his recent sharpness on the court to the CVAC pod which he bought. While it may look like like a space egg or a next generation toilet seat, it actually is being taken seriously by many athletes today. It simulates rapid changes in altitude, which promotes faster muscle recovery, increases oxygen absorption, and boosts stamina and athletic performance. These bodily changes can happen with several 20 minutes a week. Djokovic, before, could only play short matches, such as only 3 set matches, and if the opponent could extend the game, then Djokovic would most probably lose. But now, he has endurance and stamina to rival Rafael Nadal, the master of long matches. Another challenge overcome!

Novak played in Brisbane opening 2009, losing in the opening rounds. However, this proved to be his most successful season so far, reaching ten finals, and winning five tournaments in Dubai, Beijing, Basel, and Paris. He won in his birthplace of Belgrade as well. He finished this magical year as number 3 in the world, slowly crawling in to the NadalFederer rivalry; ready to take the mantle as the best tennis player in the world. In 2010, his career began to escalate again. Many historic things happened in this year, all of them doing with the Djokovic. Djokovic became number 2 in the world, and successfully defended his title. Also, he now broke up to long, tedious, and intense Nadal- Federer rivalry. Djokovic led the Serbian team to the Davis Cup title for the first time in history. While on the route to the title, Serbia defeated Croatia, The Czech- Republic, and the United States.

DJOKOVIC WINS THE US OPEN

DJOKOVIC WINS THE WIMBLEDON

Now, in the year 2011, Djokovic is going to crown himself King of Tennis in the most spectacular way possible. After winning the Wimbledon on July 3rd, Djokovic became the worlds number 1 tennis player. He was so excited that he took up some blades of grass and began munching on them, basking in the glory on the court. Before 2008, Djokovic was still famous for his on-court impersonations and funny demeanor (hence, his nickname as the Djoker), but now he is known as the best tennis player in the world. Djokovic, just 2 months later, defends his title after winning the U.S. Open. He becomes one of the few people to win 3 U.S. Open titles in one season. By the end of September, he wins ten ATP titles. In contrast to other pros stories, this player from a war-torn country with almost nothing to do with tennis and no parent support in his early years still became the worlds number 1 tennis player, overcoming challenges like low stamina/ endurance, low patience, etc. Djokovics remarkable story stands out from Nadals or Federers because of his drive to become the worlds number 1 was absolutely unrecognized, and not supported in his early years, but he still accomplished his goal and became the King of Tennis.

Writer/ Editor/ Publisher; Anoop Bandi 3rd Period Language Arts - Mrs. Fritch

Sources Tennis Link Magazine French Open Travel Edition Tennis Link Magazine November Edition The Djokers Good Life http://www.novakdjokovic.rs/index.php?jezik=2 Biography/Results/Tournaments/ Statistics Google Images and Videos