Novak Djokovic recalls one of his ‘fondest and most beautiful’ memories in tennis
Novak Djokovic has declared that winning the Davis Cup with Serbia in 2010 was one of his “fondest and most beautiful memories from the tennis court.”
The Serbian legend has confirmed his participation for the 2023 Davis Cup Finals knockout stage and sent a message to his fans ahead of the competition.
Djokovic will lead Serbia at the Final 8 stage of the team competition, which will be held from 21-26 November in Malaga, as his nation looks to claim its second Davis Cup crown.
Serbia will face Great Britain in the quarter-finals in their first knockout tie on November 23, with the winner to take on either Italy or the Netherlands in the semi-finals on November 25. In the top half of the draw, Canada will face Finland, while Czech Republic will play Australia.
Viktor Troicki, Serbia’s Davis Cup captain and a former world No 12, has picked his squad for the Finals and has made one change to the previous team, according to a report by Serbian outlet Tanjug last month.
Rising ATP singles star Hamad Medjedovic has replaced doubles specialist Nikola Cacic, while Djokovic, Laslo Djere, Dusan Lajovic and Miomir Kecmanovic complete the five-man Serbian squad.
Serbia finished second in Group C at the group phase in September to advance to the knockout stage after beating South Korea and Spain and losing to group winners Czech Republic.
Speaking in a video shared on the Davis Cup Twitter / X account, Djokovic expressed his excitement and motivation at the prospect of helping Serbia fight for another title.
“I’m excited to be part of the Serbian national team at the Davis Cup in Malaga Final 8 in only a few weeks time. We’ll have the best eight teams in the world compete in Malaga for the most prestigious trophy in our sport in team competitions and I’m looking forward,” said the 36-year-old.
Join @DjokerNole in the Malaga Final 8 🇷🇸
Watch the World No. 1 on the big stage 👉https://t.co/NxE8uzD42O#DavisCupFinals | @TSSRBIJE pic.twitter.com/BHZpQOSiSr
— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) November 8, 2023
“It’s always a great honour and privilege to represent Serbia on a stage, on a big stage, of course, in the Davis Cup. We had one title back in 2010, it was one of my most fondest and most beautiful memories from the tennis court, being able to share that with my friends and colleagues from the national team.
“I’m really looking forward to it. I hope I’ll be healthy and I’ll be contributing to every possible win for my country. I invite everyone to, of course in Spain or outside of Spain, to come and support.”
Since his triumph at the US Open in September, Djokovic has repeatedly outlined that the Davis Cup is his priority for the remainder of the season.
“My biggest wish is to win the Davis Cup,” the world No 1 told Sportal in an interview last month.
Djokovic earned singles wins over Gilles Simon and Gael Monfils to help Serbia to a dramatic 3-2 win over France in the 2010 Davis Cup final in Belgrade.
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