"My favorite moment with Novak Djokovic" - Freestyle tennis artist fondly looks back on performing racquet tricks with Serb at Australian Open

Freestyle tennis artist Stefan Bojic recently shared a throwback video of himself and Novak Djokovic having an impromptu trickshot session in a public park in Melbourne. The video was taken a few years ago, during the Australian Open.

Freestyle tennis involves performing various tricks and stunts with a tennis racquet and a ball, such as spinning, bouncing, juggling, and balancing. Bojic is considered the first tennis freestyler ever, and he has gained popularity for his trick shots and videos.

Bojic shared a throwback video on his Instagram account on Wednesday, January 24. In the video, Djokovic can be seen following Bojic’s instructions and copying his moves, such as bouncing the ball on the racquet, tossing the ball in the air, and catching it with the racquet. The Serb, chasing his 11th title in Melbourne, can be seen executing every trick with ease.

"Throwback to one of my favorite moments and memories with Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open a few years ago. We walked over to a public park next to the courts and had a little freestyle session as passersby weren’t sure what to make of it if that really was Novak, and why he’s hanging out in a park with a racket," he wrote.

"Being very polite, nobody bothered us, until we needed a cameraman to film our tricks. Novak asked one of the people to film us, and you can imagine the shock of a tennis fan going to watch the Australian Open to find themselves in such a situation. Thanks to him we have this recorded," he added.

The Serb has been in excellent form at the 2024 Australian Open, beating Croatian qualifier Dino Prizmic, Alexei Popyrin, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Adrian Mannarino, and Taylor Fritz en route to the semifinals. The World No. 1 is aiming for his 25th Grand Slam title, which would surpass the record of 24 held by Australian legend Margaret Court.

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Novak Djokovic to face Jannik Sinner in the Australian Open SF

Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner at the 2023 Davis Cup Final

Novak Djokovic will face Jannik Sinner in the men’s singles semifinal at the 2024 Australian Open on Friday, January 26. The Serb is chasing his 11th title in Melbourne, while the Italian is aiming for his maiden Grand Slam final.

Djokovic has been dominant throughout the tournament, dropping only three sets in his five matches so far. He defeated Taylor Fritz in a four-set thriller in the quarterfinal on Wednesday, January 25. The World No. 1 is the defending champion, having won the 2023 edition by defeating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final.

Sinner, on the other hand, has been impressive in his run to the last four, not losing a single set in his five matches. He defeated Andrey Rublev in straight sets in the quarterfinal. Sinner, ranked No. 4 in the world, has won 10 ATP titles, including a Masters 1000 title at the 2023 Canadian Open.

This will be the seventh meeting between Djokovic and Sinner, with the former leading the head-to-head 4-2. They last met at the 2023 Davis Cup semifinals, where the latter won in three sets. The winner will face either Daniil Medvedev or Alexander Zverev in the final on Sunday, January 28.