"At one point my dad took out a 10 Deutsche Mark bill and put it on the table and he said, 'this is all we got'" - Novak Djokovic reveals his struggles at a young age
Novak Djokovic opened up on his inspiring story of 'rags to riches' and lauded his parents, Srdjan and Dijana, for carrying the family through some extremely challenging times. The Serbian tennis superstar recently revealed that his family of five once had just 10 Deutsche Mark, which is approximately equivalent to $10 these days, and how his parents' grit and determination turned things around for the family.
Djokovic had earlier spoken about his family's struggles in war-town Serbia in the past, which was a challenging time in his young life. Speaking during a recently-released interview with Graham Bensinger, the Serb opened up about his family's extreme financial troubles.
Djokovic reflected on some of the toughest moments of his life, revealing one of the most difficult conversations the family has ever had. Back then, it was a matter of survival for them and tennis was not that important given the financial duress the family was in.
"I remember that at one point my dad took out a 10 Deutsche Mark bill and put it on the table and he said, 'this is all we got,'" Novak Djokovic said. "You know which is equivalent to 10 dollars nowadays, maybe even less."
"At that time, it was really not about tennis, it was more about us surviving as a family and having bread to eat during the day. But somehow my parents found a way and they were a great team," he added.
While his parents tried their best to hide their problems from Novak and his brothers, Marko and Djordje, there were certain things that were impossible to hide, expressed the 21-time Grand Slam champion.
"For a long time, they did hide and they succeeded in hiding a lot of things that made them suffer. They had to sacrifice in order for me to pursue my love for tennis, my love for sport. There were certain things that they could not just hide from me, I could clearly see," the Serbian player stated.
He further spoke about his parents' contributions towards the family's growth and the different roles each of them played in getting the family out of the rough patch they were in and towards better times. He stated that his mother, Dijana, has always been the 'pillar of the family' who her oldest son calls a 'superwoman.'
"My mom was and still is the pillar of the family, she has that stability and holds everyone together. She's an incredibly strong woman and truly an inspiring woman that has had to handle four men in a very small apartment with all our different needs and activities. She did everything one woman could possibly do...she's a superwoman, literally," the 35-year-old continued.
I love this photo: The nig hug between @DjokerNole and his parents Dijana and Srdjan 😊😊😊 #NoleFam #RG16 🏆🎾❤ https://t.co/CKp1PUs2ZX
He is grateful to his father, Srdjan, for showing the courage to support his tennis career despite having just $10 in his pocket to support a family of five.
"At that time when you had a dollar bill of 10 Deutsche Mark for an entire family of five, it took a lot of guts to stick with the vision of supporting me to become a successful professional tennis player," Djokovic expressed.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion believes the ability to find strength during the most difficult times is something he has inherited from his dad.
"On the court, when I somehow need to find a way and find that strength, that's the dad in me," he said on the same.
Novak Djokovic looks back at the time when he was offered British nationality
A 14-year-old Novak Djokovic was spotted by agents due to his great talent and results on the junior tennis circuit. What followed was an offer for the Serbian player and his entire family to adopt British nationality, which would provide them with a lot of resources and a stable life. Djokovic reflected on that phase of his life and why it was a highly tempting offer for his family.
"It was very tempting at that time for my parents, very very tempting," he said on the same. "My family, my parents would get a job, my family would have a house, it was a great great deal. I'm not saying that it would be wrong if we did that, who knows where the journey would take us. But I think life has just arranged and organized things in such a way that it had to be that way," the Serb added.
The nine-time Australian Open champion went on to reveal the factors that led to them declining the offer. While he was involved in the decision-making process and was unwilling to relocate and leave everything behind, the tennis star left the final decision to his parents. They took a risk that eventually worked out well.
"It was mostly the decision of my parents. I was, ofcourse, included and involved in the conversations. I personally just didn't feel it from the beginning...I just didn't think I would feel the happiest there. But I understood that it was a decision my parents had to take...Dad and Mom took that risk, turned down the offer, and we stayed here," the Belgrade native further explained.
The Serbian superstar is currently hoping for a change in vaccine regulations in the United States, which is the only way he can enter the country and participate in the 2022 US Open as he has strictly ruled out getting vaccinated. He has not played since Wimbledon and the US Open begins on August 29.