Published 18:52 IST, May 19th 2020
Novak Djokovic opens up about rejecting offer to become British citizen in the past
Novak Djokovic said that he was doing really well in junior international tournaments and that is when tennis agents offered him British citizenship.
- SportFit
- 3 min read
World No.1 tennis player Novak Djokovic would have been playing alongside Andy Murray for Great Britain in tennis and not Serbia if he would have switched his nationality at a very young age. The revelation was made by the Serbian during an interview on In Depth with Graham Bensinger. Novak Djokovic spoke about the offer being made to him during his junior days.
Novak Djokovic reveals about the offer to change nationality
During the interview, Novak Djokovic said that he was doing really well in the junior international tournaments and that is when tennis agents spotted him and gave the family an offer to changing their nationality from Serbian to British. He said that the offer was really tempting since it would have solved family problems but they decided not to go for it.
Following his statement, there was an interview with Novak Djokovic's mother in which she spoke about why the family did not take the offer. In the interview, Novak Djokovic's mother said that she wouldn't have been able to live there despite better school and practice facility for the kids. She believed that her son would not play for the United Kingdom with the same enthusiasm as his own country.
Novak Djokovic on the decision to not switch nationality
Following the statement made by Novak Djokovic's mother, the 32-year-old talked about his opinion on the offer and said that personally, he didn’t want to make the switch because he never wanted to go to England where he didn’t know anybody. He further said that he wanted to stay with his family, friends, country and to his roots basically.
Novak Djokovic tennis career
Novak Djokovic till date has won 17 Grand Slam titles and is third in the list behind Roger Federer (20 Grand Slam titles) and Rafael Nadal (19 Grand Slam titles). Novak Djokovic has so far won eight Australian Opens, five Wimbledons, three US Opens and one French Open title till date. Apart from Grand Slam titles, the Serbian has also won 9 Masters 1000 tournaments, a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games, a Davis Cup title and an ATP Cup with the Serbian national team.
Novak Djokovic net worth and brands associated with the World No.1
According to Celebrity Net Worth, the Novak Djokovic net worth currently stands at an estimated $220 million. The Novak Djokovic net worth includes sponsorship and endorsement deals over the years. Novak Djokovic is endorsing brands like Lacoste, ASICS shoes, Uniqlo, Telekom Srbija as well as German nutritional supplement brand FitLine. He is also an ambassador for Ultimate Software. As reported by Essentially Sports, Djokovic receives around $20.6 million a year through sponsorship from Lacoste and other endorsement deals. The Novak Djokovic house in Marbella, Spain, where the World No.1 is quarantined at the moment, also adds to the Novak Djokovic net worth.
Some other Novak Djokovic house locations include Monte Carlo, Belgrade, Porto Montenegro, New York and Miami.
(IMAGE: NOVAK DJOKOVIC / INSTAGRAM)
Updated 18:52 IST, May 19th 2020
