Novak Djokovic Recalls Spine-Chilling Childhood Memory of NATO Bombs Dropping Nearby: “I Tried to Scream Help Me”

Novak Djokovic grew up in a country devastated by wars. His childhood was interrupted by the air-raid sirens, the dropping of bombs, spending nights in bomb shelters, and, unsurprisingly, extreme financial hardships. For him, it was simply a loss of a normal childhood. And then, as a pre-teen, he took on the responsibilities of an adult.

First, they had to endure the Balkan War, and later, his homeland was rocked by the bombs of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) during the Kosovo War.

Before leaving for Germany, Djokovic had a near-death experience, which he remembers pretty well, revisiting it in his Novak Djokovic: The Wolf in Winter Prime Video documentary that was released on Thursday (August 20). It was a night in March 1999, when Djokovic was just 11.

One of those first nights of the bombing, our building did not have a shelter. So we had to go to another building. We were running towards that other building. It’s a horrifying sight because this is 2-3 a.m. It was dark.

Later that year, Djokovic, a tennis prodigy at that time, moved to Munich to train at 1973 French Open finalist Niki Pilic‘s academy.

You see people running around, panicking. They don’t know where to go, trying to save their lives. I tripped, and I fell. I saw my family running 40, 50 feet in front of me. And I tried to scream, ‘Help me, help me’. They didn’t hear me, they kept running. I turned around, and I looked at our building. And I saw a plane dropping two bombs into a nearby hospital. Standing in the rain and darkness…

Novak Djokovic added

In spite of enduring everything, Djokovic kept dreaming big. But to support his career, his parents had no money. His father, Srdjan Djokovic, was forced to borrow money from loan sharks. Djokovic, now one of the greatest sportsmen with 24 Grand Slam titles, took an oath in those hard times that he would repay his parents and siblings so that they could have the best life possible.

Novak Djokovic says his deportation saga was political

Novak Djokovic‘s career has been defined by multiple controversies, one of which was the vaccination saga back in 2022. Djokovic, who remains unvaccinated against COVID-19, was granted a medical exemption to enter Australia.

But due to the strict border measures, he was deported after a lot of drama, which also included legal battles. But the Serbian, in his documentary, said the entire scandal was purely political.

They did not want someone with my profile, who is known in that country and who everyone knows is not vaccinated, who was coming in there to stay for a month. Later on, I found out that there were two other people – one was a player, one was a coach- who entered Australia based on the same medical exemption that I had. It was all political. It had nothing to do with medical. It had nothing to do with anything else. It was purely political.

Djokovic returned to Melbourne the following year and beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final to win a record 10th title in the tournament. He also made the final this year as well, after beating two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner in the semifinal. But Carlos Alcaraz stopped him from ending his Grand Slam drought.

Djokovic was last seen in action in the opening round of the ongoing Cincinnati Masters. He experienced physical problems during the match against Thiago Agustin Tirante and eventually lost in three sets. The 39-year-old will next be competing at the US Open, where Alcaraz beat him in the semifinals last year.

Also read: Aryna Sabalenka Angrily Bounces Ball Back to the Ball Kid During Shock Cincinnati Defeat