Laurence Dollimore
NOVAK Djokovic has officially left Monte Carlo and settled in Marbella after splashing more than €10 million on a private luxury villa.
The tennis World No.1 is already moved into the property with wife Jelena Ristic and their two children Stefan and Tara, aged six and three respectively.
The family had spent Spain’s nationwide coronavirus lockdown of March and April in the mansion, which sits in the exclusive Sierra Blanca urbanisation.
Just a five-minute drive from Marbella centre, the 1,000sqm property was previously available to rent for €10,000 per week.
Sitting on a plot of 3,500sqm, the sprawling home comes complete with a private tennis court, perfect for Novak to train on when he’s not hitting shots down at the Puente Roman hotel.
Local tennis players Alejandro Davidovich and Carlos Gomez Herrera have been spotted arriving to the house to train with the Serbian.
Novak also trains at the luxury Puente Romano hotel where his ‘guru’ Pepe Imaz works.
With his new home, Novak will be closer to his brother Marko Djokovic, a former doubles player who is also based on the Costa del Sol.
The new pad features nine bedrooms and eight bathrooms, an outdoor and indoor pool and several lounges.
And the kids (and adults) would have struggled to be bored during lockdown with a cinema and television room, a games room with billiards and table football.
With a mix of Mediterranean and Moroccan furnishings, the home is completed by a sauna and Turkish bath, a fully-equipped gym, large barbecue and patio.
The back garden also offers views of the Med and mountains of Malaga.
News of the purchase comes after a string of controversies involving Novak and coronavirus regulations this year.
During the first lockdown in Spain the tennis champ was spotted training at the Puente Romano hotel, breaking the rules laid out in the state of alarm.
At the end of June Novak held a tennis tournament in Croatia where a host of players and workers tested positive for COVID-19, including himself and his wife.
Then later in July he was seen walking back from training and posing for pictures with fans without wearing a mask in Marbella.
