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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).