ITF World Champions

MADRID - Serbian Novak Djokovic, the world number one in men's tennis singles, has won his fifth Laureus World Sportsman of the Year award.

Djokovic, who equalled Margaret Court's record of 24 career Grand Slams by winning the US Open last September, received the award from seven-time Superbowl champion Tom Brady, Reuters reported.

As the 2024 tennis season unfolds, Bulgarian sensation Grigor Dimitrov emerges as one of the standout players, enjoying his best start to the year in recent memory. However, his impressive form ignited speculation about his potential participation in the Paris Olympics, Dnevnik reported.

MONTE CARLO - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, the world number one in men's tennis singles, has made a storming start to the clay court season by beating Russian Roman Safiulin 6-1, 6-2 in the Monte Carlo Masters second round.

Djokovic, who won after just 69 minutes of play, is now 2-0 head-to-head against Safiulin.

MONTE CARLO - Serbian tennis player Miomir Kecmanovic has got off to a successful start at the Monte Carlo Masters by beating Italian Matteo Berrettini 6-3, 6-1 in the first round on Tuesday.

He will next face Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, who defeated Monegasque Valentin Vacherot 7-5, 6-2.

The prize money at the Monte Carlo Masters is 5,950,575 euros.

MONTE CARLO - Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic has been training with Nenad Zimonjic, former head coach of the Serbia Davis Cup team, in Monte Carlo.

Djokovic was joined by Zimonjic after parting ways with former coach Goran Ivanisevic.

Maria Sakkari was back to winning ways just days after losing the Indian Wells final as she demolished China's Yuan Yue 6-2 6-2 on Thursday to ease into the third round of the Miami Open.

Iga Swiatek beat Maria Sakkari 6-4, 6-0 in just over an hour to win the BNP Paribas Open at Indian Wells, California, on Sunday, with the world's top-ranked woman losing just 21 games in six matches during the 12-day tournament.

Swiatek earned her 20th match win of the year, which leads the WTA Tour.

MIAMI - Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic will skip the March 20-31 Miami Masters tournament, the Sport klub Internet portal reports.

The decision follows in the wake of Djokovic's defeat to Italian Luca Nardi in the Indian Wells third round, after which the Serbian hinted he might not travel to Miami.

INDIAN WELLS - Serbia's Novak Djokovic, the world number one in men's tennis singles, is seeded in the first round of the Indian Wells ATP tournament and will face the winner of the tie between Australian Aleksandar Vukic and a qualifier in the second round.

The draw ceremony was held last night.

Tennis is a rapidly changing game where new talent is always challenging the top players at different events. Getting to the top and staying there isn't easy, and many players have come and gone over the years. Some have shined brightly during their peak years and continued to compete against younger, fitter players to keep winning.