Unveiling Novak Djokovic's hidden tale of trauma

The author of Novak Djokovic’s biography and tennis journalist Mark Hodgkinson has revealed the horror from which Serbia’s legendary tennis star Novak Djokovic has gone through in his early life. The 37-year-old is often regarded as the greatest player in the history of men’s tennis in the singles category in the Open era.

Djokovic’s greatness has been once again cemented as he completed his career after winning the gold medal for his country at the Paris Olympics. He defeated Spain’s young tennis sensation Carlos Alcaraz in the final in straight sets with a score of 7-6, 7-6. After the win, what it meant for Djokovic to claim glory for his country was visible, something he had always been very vocal about. He burst into tears on the court and was visibly shaken after achieving another milestone in his illustrious career.

Hodgkinson, who is a tennis journalist and writer of Djokovic’s biography, revealed in detail the horror the former world number went through during his early life. He stated that he visited the bunker where Djokovic and his family had to shelter during the NATO bombing in 1999 and explained how difficult it would’ve been to stay there, not knowing exactly how long it would take for things to get normal. He also explained that it is unlikely for Djokovic to forget what he went through during those days and it is one of the basic elements why he has such a fighter mentality.

"As part of the research for my book, I went to Belgrade for a few days,” he said. “I managed to get into the bunker where Novak and his family sheltered in 1999 during the NATO bombings. To get in, they had to walk through two thick steel doors. It was very dark. I guess it’s the kind of place that people don’t go too often now and I don’t think it’s changed very much since Novak was down there, but it was very cold and quite an eerie place to go to. I think for Novak, it’s not something that he’s going to forget. All those lives, emotions and sensations that he felt when he was down there had a huge effect on him. You know, it’s not something you’re going to forget.”