'It is up to us to fight and justify all Novak Djokovic's love', says WTA star

Novak Djokovic never held back when his young compatriots asked him for help. The number 1 in the world has always maintained a close link with his country of origin, setting himself up as a reference model for many young people who approach sport. The 17-time Grand Slam champion will soon lead his national team in the second edition of the ATP Cup, then go on the hunt for his ninth Australian Open title. The Belgrade tennis player will start with the underdogs in Melbourne Park in less than a month, although he will have to pay close attention to Rafael Nadal, Daniil Medvedev, Dominic Thiem (who beat him at the 2020 ATP Finals), Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev. Thanks also to the new ranking system introduced to deal with the consequences of the pandemic, Nole has an excellent chance of breaking the all-time record of weeks spent at the top of the ATP ranking. Meanwhile, teenager Olga Danilovic - who broke the pass for the main draw of a Grand Slam for the first time in her career - praised Djokovic's immense contribution to the development of tennis in the Balkan region.

Danilovic pays tribute to Novak Djokovic

"I believed in my work, in myself and the preparations that I had thanks to Novak Djokovic together with coaches Boris Bosnjakovic, Kristijan Schneider and Vlado Radonjic," Olga Danilovic said. "Great gratitude to Novak for everything he has done and is doing, and it is up to us to fight and justify all his love, commitment and everything he is doing for the betterment of all of us." The 19-year-old qualified for the Australian Open main draw after defeating Ankita Raina in the final round on Wednesday. Danilovic won 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, and will join Novak Djokovic and the rest of the field at the year's first Major. Srecna Nova Godina, an unabashed Djokovic fan, posted a heartfelt video tagged with a caption that read, “@DjokerNole! We wish all the best for 2021”. Amee and her spouse Brian, who, too, are ardent followers of the Serb, also shared a video where they hold up messages introducing themselves and wishing Djokovic the very best going into the new season. The post is titled, “Happy New Year Nole! Let your unique awesomeness and positive energy inspire confidence in others”. In another post shared on a fan page, one of his young followers, Mia, holds up many messages full of good wishes and support. One of them reads, “Best wishes for the Australian Open. I’ll be supporting you all the way! See you @Melbourne Park.” Djokovic had invited Mia to play with him in one of his practice sessions during the Australian Open.

 

from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/2LuupbK