Nikola Pilić, Tennis Legend and Djokovic’s Mentor, Passes Away
ZAGREB, Croatia – The tennis world mourns the loss of Nikola Pilić, an emblematic figure who left an indelible mark on the sport. Pilić, known for being the first captain to lead three countries to glory in the Davis Cup, passed away at the age of 86.
The Croatian Tennis Association confirmed the death of Pilic, who was a prominent tennis player and coach.
Pilić reached the French Open singles final in 1973 and was a key figure in the Wimbledon boycott that same year.
Yugoslav tennis officials accused Pilić of refusing to play a Davis Cup match against New Zealand. Although he denied the accusations, he was suspended. The International Tennis Federation (currently ITF) supported the decision and reduced his suspension to one month, which included Wimbledon.
Due to the support of the new Association of Tennis Professionals, 12 of the 16 best seeded players and a total of 81 players boycotted Wimbledon.
Pilić was already a star when tennis turned professional in 1968. When American businessman Lamar Hunt backed a new professional circuit called World Championship Tennis, figures like Pilić, John Newcombe, and Tony Roche were the first eight male players to be signed, known as the “Handsome Eight”.
Pilić won nine singles titles and reached number 6 in the world ranking. He lost the French Open final against Ilie Nastase. His six doubles titles included the 1970 US Open alongside Pierre Barthes, where they defeated Newcombe and Rod Laver in a four-set final.
After retiring as a player in 1978, Pilić dedicated himself to coaching and managed to win the Davis Cup as a non-playing captain with Germany (1988, 1989, 1993), Croatia (2005) and Serbia (2010).
Future stars like Michael Stich, Goran Ivanisevic, and Novak Djokovic, who considered him his mentor, passed through his academy near Munich.
