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London 2012: Novak Djokovic, the Making of a Champion, Part 2
Published: July 24, 2012
Turning Professional
In early 2003, at the age of 15, Djokovic received wildcards into three Futures events in Germany and Serbia, but failed to win a match.
Then in June, having just turned 16, he received another wildcard into a Futures in Belgrade. There, in the first round, he beat the No. 4 seed and then another four matches to win the title, gaining him his first world ranking of No. 767.
Afterwards he said, “My dream was to get through the first round and win my first professional point, so what happened was beyond my expectations. I won the title in my home country, my hometown. It showed me that I can compete with professional tennis players and beat them.”
Two weeks later, and once again with the help of a wildcard, Djokovic reached the semifinals of another Futures in Belgrade, and three weeks later—this time as a direct entrant into the main draw—reached yet another semifinal.
At age 16, he finished 2003 ranked world No. 687.
In February 2004, Djokovic attained his highest ITF world junior ranking of No. 24.
However, his success in Futures and Challenger events saw him rise into the world’s top 200 and finish 2004 at No. 186 when he was 17.
He qualified for the 2005 Australian Open, losing in the first round in straight sets to Marat Safin.
Having turned 18, he qualified for the French Open, where he was forced to retire in the second round against Guillermo Coria.
He then qualified for Wimbledon, where he lost in the third round to Sebastian Grosjean—a result that lifted him into the top 100.
In September he reached the third round of the U.S. Open, losing there to Fernando Verdasco, and finished 2005 as the youngest man in the top 100 at No. 78 at just 18 years old.
Still struggling financially, in April 2006, Srdjan was so disheart...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Tennis
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