Novak Djokovic heartbroken after tragic railway station collapse in Serbia claims 14 lives
World No. 4 Novak Djokovic offered his condolences to those affected by the recent incident in Novi Sad. An unfortunate accident claimed 14 lives after the roof of a railway station collapsed on Friday in the second largest city of Serbia.
Djokovic was last seen competing at the Six Kings Slam, where he lost to Jannik Sinner in the semifinals, before defeating Rafael Nadal in the third place match.
The Serb offered his sympathy to those affected by the train mishap in Novi Sad and shared a message via his social media account on Instagram. He prayed for the families of the victims and wrote:
"My heart goes out to all those affected by the tragedy in Novi Sad. Our deepest condolences, thoughts and prayers to the victims' families," Novak Djokovic said
Djokovic was born in Belgrade, which is less than 100km away from Novi Sad. Apart from him the Serbian prime minister Milos Vucevic also offered sympathy to the families of those affected in the railway incident.
Co-incidentally, Djokovic shared a special moment with his wife Jelena in Novi Sad last year on Valentines Day. The couple enjoyed a date night at Serbian singer Zeljko Samardzic's concert and also celebrated his 22nd Grand Slam win at the 2023 Australian Open.
While the former World No. 1 clinched three Grand Slam titles last year, he failed to add to his locker in 2024. He secured a runner-up finish at Wimbledon and also reached the semifinals of the Australian Open, but struggled make a lasting impression at any of those events.
Despite an ordinary run on the ATP tour, Djokovic did manage to create history by winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics for Serbia. He defeated Carlos Alcaraz of Spain in straight sets to achieve the feat in August, 7-6(3), 7-6(2).
Novak Djokovic is still in line to qualify for the ATP Finals this year
Novak Djokovic has had an unusual season this year with no titles to his name so far. He's chalked up 37 wins from 46 matches and 3910 points in the ATP Rankings.
Despite being trophyless and missing significant events on tour, Djokovic is still in line to qualify for the ATP Finals. He currently holds the seventh spot behind Alex De Minaur and is 45 points ahead of Casper Ruud.
While the Serb is yet to confirm his participation at the year-end championships, he did win the tournament in Turin last year. He defeated Jannik Sinner in the final, 6-3, 6-3.
World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Daniil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev have so far qualified for the year-end championships. The ATP Finals will begin on November 10, 2024.