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For Novak Djokovic, A Year To Celebrate In Tennis

Novak Djokovic smiles with his U.S. Open trophy atop the Empire State Building in New York, Sept. 13, 2011. The Serbian defeated Rafael Nadal to win his first U.S. Open tennis championship and third Grand Slam trophy of 2011.
Seth Wenig
/
AP
Novak Djokovic smiles with his U.S. Open trophy atop the Empire State Building in New York, Sept. 13, 2011. The Serbian defeated Rafael Nadal to win his first U.S. Open tennis championship and third Grand Slam trophy of 2011.

In 2011, Novak Djokovic had just about the best year a male tennis player has ever had, including wins at three of the four Grand Slam tournaments.

"This is the athlete of the year," says Jon Wertheim of Sports Illustrated. "This is a brutal, brutal sport. This guy is playing on six continents, every surface....This is one of the all time great years in open tennis history."

This year, Djokovic also kept to a gluten-free diet. Must have been particularly difficult since his family's business is a pizza parlor.

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