” I am a perfectionist. I have a very high standard for me and I don’t like to miss anything,” says Djordje Djokovic, the youngest of the Djokovic brothers. Djordje is the key figure at the Serbian Open, the country’s premier ATP tournament, of which he is the tournament director. Held along the banks of the Great Danube in the historic city of Belgrade, the Serbian Open completed its 6th edition in 2022. Djordje Djokovic spoke to LWOS for an exclusive interview about his experience hosting one major international sporting events in the Balkan region.

Djordje comes from a background in finance. The conception of the Serbian Open idea started with the Adria Tour, which aimed to organize tennis events in five Balkan countries in 2020. Djordje also oversaw this event as the tournament director. “As we were standing on this beautiful terrace and watching Dominic Thiem win the final against Krajinovic, Novak turned to me and said, ‘Man, this is amazing.’ I then told him that we should start discussing having an ATP event here and he immediately said, ‘Let’s do it,’” Djordje recalled.

The Serbian Open featured a strong field despite being a 250 event and had to compete against an ATP 500 event in Barcelona held the same week. Speaking at a press conference, Australian John Millman said: “I played Thiem in the first round and now I’m playing Kecmanovic in the second and if I win I’ll have to play Novak. It’s kind of a Master 1000 level domain.”

Djordje explained how the tournament has invested in building a new players’ lounge and upgrading gymnasium facilities. “Belgrade is one of the biggest cities in Europe with all its history. A lot of players recognize that and they love coming here. We want to provide them with the best possible facilities throughout the tournament. I spoke to Andrey Rublev and he said he feels good here and the level of competition is so much higher. I wish I could give him an extra 250 points,” joked Djordje, talking about possible upgrades of the event to ATP 500 level. suggested that the Serbia Open has a strong chance of getting an upgrade to that level in the next couple of years.

During the Serbian Open 2022, the tournament adopted an innovative idea of ​​planting a tree for every ticket purchased. “This is a very unique initiative of which we are very proud. Not only are we organizing this beautiful event and promoting our city, but we are also doing something good for the environment and the planet,” said Djordje. The tournament also attracted a huge fan following with affordable tickets, a variety of dining options, plenty of fan events and player encounters including local hero and great Novak Djokovic. “My intention is for everyone to have a good time. Whether it’s in the VIP box or in the stands. I’m very happy to see a number of families, especially with children, attending the tournament. We have to do something good,” Djordje said.

“Novak is such an inspiration to me. He has achieved so much in tennis and continues to do so. Yet we maintain our relationship like all other siblings. We three brothers left home at a very young age. We kept pushing ourselves to do better. Novak is not involved in the organization of the event. But he often guides me as a brother and provides valuable feedback as a top player. I really appreciate having that,” Djordje said of his older brother and world number one Novak Djokovic.

“We try to do our best to represent Serbia on the international stage. Serbians are very welcoming and host-oriented. We have welcomed more than 2000 international tourists who came to our city just for this tournament. We would like may that number be much higher in the years to come. I want everyone to experience what my city and my country have to offer. As Novak mentioned in the press earlier, we really have a lot to offer. Having an event like this really helps us do that.

Djordje Djokovic has high goals for the tournament and his future. He is already making plans to expand the event and take it to the next level. “I would like it to be a Balkan 1000 level Masters tournament,” he said.

Serbia Open 2022 saw Andrey Rublev win the singles title, and Gonzalo Escobar and Ariel Behar were crowned champions in doubles.

Main photo:
Embed from Getty Imageswindow.gie=window.gie||function(c){(gie.q=gie.q||[]).push(c)};gie(function(){gie.widgets.load({id:’lVw5ZAw7QL9C3IDeG55GEA’,sig:’cB6bMtGzS3YpXNuBv7LX5ModeOj2aKMzZJ9ph9c2qp4=’,w:’594px’,h:’396px’,items:’1240207719 ′,caption:true ,tld:’com’,is360:false })});