Serbian Open Brings out Djokovic, Zimonjic, Tipsarevic and Troicki in Belgrade

This week’s stop is in Belgrade, Serbia, for the Serbian Open. This tournament abroad brings players to the table the likes of Novak Djokovic, Vitor Troiki, Nenad Zimonjic and Janko Tipsarevic, each a Serbian Compatriot of one another. The capital of Serbia today is in Belgrade.

The tournament is still in its infancy with only two years behind it, and started in 2009.

For Fernando Gonzales of Chile, this is his first comeback tournament since hip surgery. Please look to http://atpworldtour.com/ for some photo ops in Belgrade’s Zoo, where Gonzales had the opportunity to meet up with baby Tigers and Lions.

For Janko Tipsarevic, he has reached the semi-finals this week. He will next face India’s Somdev Devvarmen. Devvarmens last match went three hours and thirteen minutes with a score of 7-6 (6), 2-6, 7-6 (8). Devvarmen got past Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain.

Coached by Scott McCain, this 26-year-old played for the University of Virginia, ending in 2008. You could say that he has been on tour for three years now.

As an All-American, Devvarmen won the 2007 and '08 NCAA singles title. A resident of Charlottesville, Va., his current ranking is No. 71 in the world, which is also a career high.

In 2006 and '07 as an amateur, his movement across the continuum of time and rank was steady. It was not until he finished school in 2008 where his ranking started to climb significantly.

From 2007 to '08, Somdev had a dramatic rise from inside the 400s to the 100s in the world rankings. Somdev is also a member of India’s Davis Cup team.

This year, he is the reining Sports Person of the Year with cricketer Sachin Tendulkar of India. His next matchup is with Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia.

Cerebral, reflective and thoughtful, Janko adapts well to any continent or surface. He can sometimes become a showman with his behavior and funny sketches on court. Like a diamond in the rough, Tipsarivic is something special.

You may find Janko Tipsarevic on-line at (http://jtipsarevic.com/). His current rank is No. 36 in the world with a career high of No. 33.

Tipsarevic has ranked in the Top 50 for three straight seasons. He is a Davis Cup stalwart, and has  a 3-1 record in singles. He is also a member of the team to win the title for Serbia by defeating France, 3-2 last year