Novak Djokovic walked into the Hellenic Championship as the biggest name on court and left it with tears in his eyes.
His 7-6 (3), 6-1 win over Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo was routine by his standards, but what followed cut far deeper than sport.
The match marked Djokovic’s place in the quarterfinals of Greece’s first top-tier tennis event in more than 30 years, a symbolic homecoming for the 38-year-old, who recently moved to Athens with his family.
Yet the night became less about progress and more about memory.
“It feels really like home playing in Athens,” he said. “More than recognition for my tennis achievements, I felt that people here approached me in a friendly and humane way, and that touched my heart.”
The first set was a test of nerves. Both players held serve until Djokovic edged out in the tiebreaker. In the second, Djokovic dismantled Tabilo with precision, breaking twice to wrap up the match in over 90 minutes.
“I'm thrilled to get through tonight,” he told the crowd. “I played against Tabilo and I've never won against him, so I was more under tension before the match than I would be before some others.”
And then as the lights dimmed and a tribute video played, Djokovic’s composure cracked. The montage was for Nikola Pilic, the Croatian coach who took a 12-year-old boy from Serbia and gave him a future.
Pilic died in September, aged 86.
“He was more than just a mentor and a coach to me,” Djokovic said. “He was part of my family — to me and my brothers. He helped so much. I definitely wouldn't be here without him.”
Speaking later to the ATP website, Djokovic said, “It was an emotional moment. Considering what he meant to me and my family — privately, also professionally — he was my tennis father as I like to call him, someone who has played a fundamental, integral role in my development as a tennis player and as a human being. It was really sad news when I heard that he passed away.”
Djokovic, who now holds 100 ATP titles and 24 Grand Slams, said Pilic’s influence would never fade.
“As long as I play tennis and as long as I live, I'll celebrate his name,” he said. “This was one of the moments of how to pay tribute and I'm sure in future people will learn about how Niki has impacted tennis and sport. He deserves it. He was a special man.”
Pilic was runner-up at the French Open in 1973 and after turning to coaching captained Germany to three Davis Cup titles between 1988 and 1993.