Love Stories: A temporary job could have split Novak Djokovic and wife Jelena up years before they wed

Love story: The temporary Novak Djokovic and his wife Jelena could have divorced just a few years before they got married.

Novak Djokovic has had the support of wife Jelena for years, but you won’t see her in the stands when the 2024 Australian Open campaign begins.

Days before the tournament, Jelena Djokovic told her former Twitter follower X that she would not be joining her husband Down Under. READ MORE: Meet tennis’ new girl, Morgan Riddle

Fan “Should I go?” To which she replied “No,” using several school-themed emojis, saying she wouldn’t be busy at home with her two kids.

Djokovic may be tennis’ golden couple, but their decades-long romance is far more benign than you’d expect. After meeting Serbian athlete Jelena Ristic at high school in the late 90s, the pair bonded over their shared interest in tennis and became friends.

They started dating a few years later, in the early 2000s, and had their first date at a sports bar in Monte Carlo, where Novak played tennis. “Being together is like science fiction,” Elena told Hello! about their love. magazine.

Read more: How did Ash Barty meet her ‘skinny’ husband Harry Kissick?

Novak and Jelena Djokovic celebrated their second wedding anniversary in the 2000s with hundreds of red roses. Novak and Jelena Djokovic celebrated their second wedding anniversary in the 2000s with hundreds of red roses.

“I was a student in life and he was a very young tennis player and we didn’t have enough money to go on expensive trips.”

Their romance was initially long distance as he was studying fashion brand management at the prestigious Bocconi University in Milan at the time. “Airplanes were something we couldn’t afford at the time,” says Elena. “We thought and designed this plan. ‘How can we meet and how can we improve our relationship?’

After graduation, she moved to Monte Carlo with Novak to continue her education at the International University of Monaco while Novak worked in the world of tennis. Read more: Why Paige Lorenz is worth watching in the tennis stands

Jelena Liszt, Novak Djokovic’s girlfriend from Serbia, watches the semi-finals of the 2008 Masters Cup.

Elena watched Novak’s semi-final match at the 2008 Masters Cup. (Andrew Wong/Getty)

He turned pro in 2003 and won his first major title a few years later, but it was Elena’s business that put a strain on their relationship when they moved in together.

The Serbian found a temporary job at an oil company and spent so much time in the office that Novak rarely showed up for his training schedule. “At one point, Novak said to me, ‘Honey, we can’t go on like this,'” she said, via People .

So he quit his job and became country director of the Novak Djokovic Foundation (NDF), which he founded with his family in 2007. Through the couple’s humanitarian work, the charity supports underprivileged children in Serbia, giving them access to early education.

That same year, Novak won his first Masters title, won his first major final and finished the season ranked third in the world, finishing in the top three. Elena and Novak Djokovic attend the New York dinner of the Novak Djokovic Foundation, on September 10, 2013, in the Capital.

Before Elena and Novak married in 2014, they established the Novak Djokovic Foundation. Elena is often seen on the court during games and Novak is always happy to have her around, although he admits how difficult his life is.

“Running with Wolf (his nickname) can be very stressful. I know he doesn’t always like it. …I love him. “He’s a big supporter of mine,” he once said. Continuing to set records on the tennis court, Elena earned her master’s degree, and after eight years of dating, they married in September 2013.

The couple married the following July at Aman Sveti Stefan, a beach resort overlooking the Adriatic Sea in Montenegro. Novak and Jelena Djokovic kiss.

“I’m so happy to have him in my life. “I couldn’t ask for a better partner,” Elena said of Novak.

Novak and Elena said “I do” weeks after her second Wimbledon win, but on their wedding day, he thought of everything.