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Dino Prizmic was a huge underdog when he was drawn against Novak Djokovic in the first round of the Australian Open, but the 18-year-old Croatian is making a name for himself after winning the second set against the 24-time grand slam champion.
Prizmic is playing in the main draw of a grand slam for the first time after battling his way through three rounds of qualifying at Melbourne Park this week, and his reward was a first-round match against the 10-time Australian Open champion Djokovic – who has not lost a match at the tournament since 2018.
Prizmic would have only been 12 years old when the Serbian lost to Hyeon Chung and looked up to Djokovic when he was growing up, calling the World No 1 his “idol” – along with Rafael Nadal.
“I’m very happy about that because it’s my first grand slam,” Prizmic said after making it through qualifying. “It is a big moment for me and I just want to stay focused and play the next match. I will act like it is a normal match, not very stressed. I just want to play, be relaxed and to give the best for me.” But who is Dino Prizmic? Here’s everything you need to know about the teenage qualifier.
Prizmic offered a glimpse of his talent when he won the junior Roland Garros title at the French Open last season, while he made his breakthrough on the ATP Challenger circuit – the level below the professional tour – when he won the title in Banja Luka.
But Prizmic still entered the season ranked 178 in the world and very much an unknown in the wider tennis world. The Croatian is from Split and came from the same tennis club where former Wimbledon champion – and current Djokovic coach – Goran Ivanisevic also learned how to play the game.
Prizmic, whose favourite shots are his heavy, aggressive forehand strike and serve, moved to Zagreb when he was aged 14. Fast forward to age 17, and after 11 months on the junior circuit, he had his first big breakthrough when he won the junior title at Roland Garros.
(Getty Images)
Prizmic, who is managed by former world No.3 Ivan Ljubicic, was only a ninth-ranked junior when he when the French Open title defeating Bolivia’s Juan Carlos Prado Angelo on Court Simonne-Mathieu 6-1, 6-4
“For me, it’s a big achievement,”the said. “It’s my dream when I was kid. I am really happy for myself and for my team and my whole family to won this tournament.”
In winning the title, he followed in the footsteps of former US Open champion and compatriot Marin Cilic and it gave Prizmic confidence to win his first ATP Challenger title that same season.
Ahead of 2024, Prizmic set his ambitions on entering the world’s top 100 – but the Australian Open draw gave the 18-year-old a priceless opportunity to take on Djokovic and the qualifier found himself living his childhood dream when he won the second set on a tiebreak.
