Nikola Pilic, the former tennis player and coach credited with helping Novak Djokovic become one of the greatest players of all time, has died at the age of 87. Pilic, who reached the French Open final and played in a Wimbledon doubles final during a career that ended in 1978, later became a key mentor to Djokovic.
Pilic took Djokovic under his wing when the Serbian was 10 years old, training him at his academy in Germany. Djokovic once described Pilic as his 'tennis father' and a mentor who shared his knowledge of tennis and life. 'Niki's lovely wife Mija and he welcomed me with open arms to their tennis academy in Germany and treated me like their own child,' he said.
Beyond coaching, Pilic was considered a key figure in the creation of the ATP and the modern tennis system. He won the Davis Cup five times as a coach with Germany, Croatia and Serbia. As a player, he also won the US Open doubles title with Pierre Bartey, beating Rod Laver and Roy Emerson in the final.
His career was not without controversy. In 1973, he was suspended for refusing to play for Yugoslavia in the Davis Cup, leading to a boycott of Wimbledon by 81 players in support.
Three years ago, Pilic described Djokovic as the greatest of all time, saying his success had 'hurt the West'. He pointed to Djokovic's record, including the same number of Grand Slam titles as Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer, better head-to-head records, and nearly 17,000 ATP points at one stage.
Pilic also suggested that Djokovic would have been treated differently at the 2020 US Open, saying that had Federer done the same thing, he would not have been disqualified. He added: 'Djokovic is just phenomenal, he has worked a lot, with no shortcuts.'
