 Dokic at the2011 US Open | |
| Country (sports) |  Australia (1998–2000, 2006–2014) FR Yugoslavia (2001–2003) Serbia and Montenegro (2003–2005) |
|---|---|
| Born | (1983-04-12)12 April 1983 (age 42) |
| Height | 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in) |
| Turned pro | 1998 |
| Retired | 2014 |
| Plays | Right-handed (two-handed backhand) |
| Prize money | $4,481,044 |
| Singles | |
| Career record | 348–221 |
| Career titles | 6 |
| Highest ranking | No. 4 (19 August 2002) |
| Grand Slam singles results | |
| Australian Open | QF (2009) |
| French Open | QF (2002) |
| Wimbledon | SF (2000) |
| US Open | 4R (2000,2001) |
| Other tournaments | |
| Tour Finals | QF (2001,2002) |
| Olympic Games | SF – 4th (2000) |
| Doubles | |
| Career record | 118–100 |
| Career titles | 4 |
| Highest ranking | No. 10 (4 February 2002) |
| Grand Slam doubles results | |
| Australian Open | 3R (1999,2000) |
| French Open | F (2001) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (1999,2000,2001) |
| US Open | 2R (2000,2001) |
| Other doubles tournaments | |
| Olympic Games | 2R (2000) |
| Mixed doubles | |
| Career record | 4–9 |
| Grand Slam mixed doubles results | |
| Australian Open | QF (2001) |
| French Open | 2R (2000) |
| Wimbledon | 3R (2001) |
| US Open | 1R (2001,2003) |
| Team competitions | |
| Fed Cup | Australia (total 14–3) Serbia and Montenegro (2–0) |
| Hopman Cup | Australia W (1999) |
Jelena Dokic (Serbian:Јелена Докић,romanized: Jelena Dokić;pronounced[jɛ̌lɛnadokit͡ɕ]; born 12 April 1983) is an Australian broadcaster,tennis analyst, former professional player and public speaker. Her highest ranking as a tennis player was world No. 4, in August 2002. She wonWTA Tour events on all surfaces during her career.
In the1999 Wimbledon Championships the 16-year-old Dokic achieved one of the biggest upsets in tennis history, beatingMartina Hingis 6–2, 6–0 in the first round. This remains the only time the women's world No. 1 has ever lost to a qualifier at Wimbledon. Dokic went on to reach the quarterfinals of that competition, only her second Grand Slam championship.
Dokic rapidly ascended through the rankings after her Wimbledon breakthrough, but her time in the world elite was beset by off-court struggles. Her relationship with her outspoken father and coachDamir Dokić, on whose advice she switched allegiance to theFederal Republic of Yugoslavia in November 2000, was the subject of much media speculation over many years. She switched back to Australia in 2005. Dokic made a serious return to tennis in 2008 and finished 2009 back in the WTA top 100, but thereafter struggled badly with form and injuries, and ceased playing professionally in 2014.
She wrote of physical and mental abuse by her father in her 2017 autobiographyUnbreakable. In November 2024, a feature-length documentary film based on the book, titledUnbreakable: The Jelena Dokic Story, was released in Australian cinemas.
Jelena Dokić was born on 12 April 1983 inOsijek,SR Croatia,SFR Yugoslavia,[1] to aSerb father,Damir Dokić, and aCroat mother, Ljiljana (née Podnar).[2] She has a younger brother, Savo, eight years her junior.[3]
Her family lived in Osijek until June 1991 when, due to the instability of thebreakup of Yugoslavia, they settled inSombor, Serbia, for a short time before immigrating to Australia in 1994 when Dokić was 11 years of age.[3] She has spoken of growing up in poverty, and at one time (after the family left Croatia for Serbia) they lived in a shed infested with rats.[4][5]
Upon arrival in Australia they lived inFairfield, a suburb ofSydney, where Dokić (later Dokic) attendedFairfield Public School without knowing any English when she started,[3] and thenFairfield High School.[6]
From the time she first picked up atennis racket as a young child, through becoming a tennis champion as a teenager, and then through most of her career, her father was violent and abusive towards her, taking all of her winnings, and beating her frequently.[7]
In 1998, she won theUS Open girls' singles title and theFrench Open doubles withKim Clijsters, ending the season ranked world No. 1 in thejunior singles rankings and world No. 7 in doubles. She was anAustralian Institute of Sport scholarship holder.[8]
Dokic started the year by teaming up withMark Philippoussis to win theHopman Cup title.[9] Until 2016, it was Australia's lone victory at the event.[10] She then received a wildcard into the Australian Open, losing to world No. 1,Martina Hingis, in two sets. AtWimbledon, Dokic had her breakthrough: As a qualifier, she caused an upset, defeating world No. 1 Hingis in the first round, in straight sets.[11] Ranked No. 129 at the time, she was the lowest-ranked player to have defeated the top seed in aGrand Slam tournament in theOpen era. She also defeated ninth-seededMary Pierce in straight sets, before losing in three toAlexandra Stevenson in the quarterfinals. Dokic also reached her first WTA Tour doubles final withAmanda Coetzer in Tokyo. During 1999, she jumped 298 spots, finishing the year at world No. 43.[12]
Dokic was defeated in the first round of the2000 Australian Open byRita Kuti-Kis of Hungary. After the match, Dokic said, "I lost to a player who has never been a player and, I guess, probably never will be."[13] During the spring clay court season, Dokic reached the quarterfinals of theTier I events inHilton Head, South Carolina and Rome (upsettingVenus Williams en route), as well as earningFed Cup victories overKim Clijsters,Anna Kournikova andSandrine Testud, respectively. However, Dokic lost in the second round at the French Open.[14]
Her successes at Wimbledon continued; she advanced to the semifinals where she lost toLindsay Davenport. She reached the fourth round of theUS Open and lost toSerena Williams, after holding two set points in the first-set tiebreaker. At the2000 Summer Olympics, representing Australia, she lost toMonica Seles in the bronze medal match.[15] In doubles, she teamed withRennae Stubbs, but lost in the second round.[16] Dokic finished the year at world No. 26.
Beginning with theAustralian Open, she began playing forYugoslavia. Her father, Damir, claimed irregularities in the draw after her first-round loss to Lindsay Davenport and was banned from the tournament due to abusive behaviour. Damir later said, "I think the draw is fixed just for her".[17] This resulted in intense media speculation then and over the years.[18][19][20][21]
After the Australian Open, her family moved to the United States. In May, she won her first singles title in theRome Masters, defeatingAmélie Mauresmo in the final 7–6, 6–1. Later that year in doubles, she teamed withConchita Martínez to reach the final of theFrench Open, where they were defeated byVirginia Ruano Pascual andPaola Suárez, in straight sets.[22]
Later that year in singles, she reached five finals, winning two titles, in Tokyo (defeating former world No. 1Arantxa Sánchez Vicario), and theKremlin Cup (defeatingElena Dementieva). She also won her second title in doubles inLinz, withNadia Petrova, and qualified for theWTA Tour Championships in singles, reaching the quarterfinals. She finished the year as the world No. 8. TheYugoslav Olympic Committee declared her its Athlete of the Year for 2001.[23]
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Dokic reached the final of theOpen Gaz de France, where she was forced to hand a walkover to Venus Williams, after her first victory overMonica Seles a day earlier, due to a right thigh strain suffered in her win.[24] In April, she won her fourth singles title inSarasota, Florida, defeatingTatiana Panova in the final.[25] At theHamburg event, Dokic collected a straight-set win overJustine Henin, before having to retire in the semifinals. Dokic was unable to defend herItalian Open title, losing to 11th-seededAnastasia Myskina in the third round.
InStrasbourg, she reached her fifth final, losing toSilvia Farina Elia. At theFrench Open, she was defeated by top-seededJennifer Capriati in the quarterfinals. Dokic then won her fifth career singles title inBirmingham, defeating Myskina in the final in two sets. She then lost in the fourth round at Wimbledon toDaniela Hantuchová.[26]
After Wimbledon, Dokic reached the final of theAcura Classic in San Diego, scoring her first win over Jennifer Capriati in a three-set match. In the final, she was defeated by Venus Williams. She also reached the semifinals of Los Angeles, losing toChanda Rubin,[27] andMontreal, notching a victory over Martina Hingis, before retiring hurt against Capriati.[28][29] Despite a loss toElena Bovina in the second round of theUS Open, Dokic reached her career-high singles ranking of world No. 4. She then reached the semifinals inSalvador, Bahia and Tokyo. Dokic again qualified for theWTA Tour Championships, losing in the quarterfinals to Serena Williams. She finished the year ranked world No. 9 in singles.[30]
In doubles, Dokic won titles in Sarasota (withElena Likhovtseva), Los Angeles (with Kim Clijsters) andLinz (withNadia Petrova), as well as reaching the finals of Moscow and Zürich (both with Petrova). This success resulted in her career-high doubles ranking of world No. 10.
In 2003, Dokic hiredBorna Bikić from Croatia to replace her father as her trainer whom she accused of "wrecking her career", after several outbursts and volatile behavior at tennis tournaments. By this time, she had also been estranged from her family due to a brief relationship with Brazilian racing driverEnrique Bernoldi.[31] She played 30 events, reaching one final, one semifinal and seven quarterfinals. At Wimbledon she narrowly lost in the third round 4–6, 4–6 to a 16-year-oldMaria Sharapova. At Zürich, she beat the then-world No. 1 player Clijsters, but lost to Henin in the final. She and Petrova also reached a final in doubles in Rome. She played in the2004 Fed Cup for theSerbia and Montenegro team and achieved two wins.
In mid-2004, Dokic returned to her family in Serbia to attempt a reconciliation.[31] In November 2005, after a turbulent period of 4–5 months during which she cancelled all her tennis commitments and not even her family knew her whereabouts,[citation needed] she returned to Australia proclaiming, "I am an Australian, I feel like an Australian and I want to play for Australia again."[32] She later identified her switch to Yugoslavia as the biggest regret of her career, saying that her father was subjecting her to extreme physical and mental abuse at the time and he made the decision for her.[33]
Representing Australia for the first time in five years, Dokic received a wildcard into theAuckland Open in Auckland, but lost her first-round match toJulia Schruff, hitting 51 unforced errors and 28 double faults.[34] Dokic then earned a wildcard berth at theAustralian Open after winning the wildcard playoff. She held a match point on her opponentVirginie Razzano's serve and hit a forehand winner that caught the line, only to have the umpire rule the ball out. She went on to lose the match, hitting over 70 unforced errors.
Later that year, Dokic played in the qualifying tournament forWimbledon, where she received a wildcard but suffered a three-set loss toAlexandra Stevenson. Under the guidance of new coachNikola Pilić, after over three months away from the tour due to injury, Dokic qualified for a $10k tournament and reached the semifinals of the main draw before losing toAstrid Besser. In November 2006, Dokic denied reports from her father that she had been kidnapped by her boyfriend, Tin Bikić.[35]
In her interview, she said she would not play in the2007 Australian Open because she was not ready and her aim was to get back into the top 30. Shortly after, Dokic left the Nikola Pilić Tennis Academy. She was due to sign a contract to be in the academy for a year, but instead returned to Borna Bikić, her coach. Dokic said she was not satisfied with the contract Pilić's academy offered her. After withdrawing from several ITF events in the early 2007, Dokic lost in the early rounds of two $10k events in Rome. She then continued to withdraw from events. Back in Australia on 17 October, Dokic released a statement throughTennis Australia that she would use their facilities in an attempt to make a comeback.[36]
Dokic said she had not felt "within herself" to play during 2007 but was now ready to put in the hard work necessary to get back to the top. She citedMary Pierce, Jennifer Capriati andAndre Agassi as inspirational figures for her goal of reaching the highest echelons of tennis once more. Dokic's long-awaited return to tennis came during the Australian Open Wildcard Playoff, where she was hoping to earn a place in the firstmajor of 2008. She emerged from the round-robin stage with a 3–0 record before retiring in her quarterfinal match while trailing 6–3, 3–1 due to a thigh strain.
Dokic received a wildcard for the qualifications of the2008 Hobart International and won four matches to reach the second round of the main draw, where she retired in her match againstFlavia Pennetta due to an ankle injury. She received a qualifying wildcard into the Australian Open but lost in the second round. After a three-month layoff, Dokic finally returned to action at theMorocco Open inFes, where she qualified but lost in the first round toGréta Arn. She then entered the following week in a $25k tournament in Florence, Italy, and won saving two match points againstMirjana Lučić in the quarterfinals, and defeating seventh-seededLucie Hradecká in the final. A week later, Dokic continued her winning streak by capturing the $25k tournament in Caserta, Italy.
She was then offered a wildcard to theInternationaux de Strasbourg, where she lost in the first round to SwissTimea Bacsinszky. In July, she won her third $25k in Darmstadt. Following a period with less successful results, Dokic took a temporary break, withdrawing from all ITF tournaments during September and early October. She returned in mid-October after being awarded a wildcard for qualifying into the Tier IILinz tournament. There, she won her first round match againstPetra Martić before losing to world No. 63,Jill Craybas, in the second round.[37]
In December, Dokic again played the Australian Open Wildcard Playoff event, where she emerged from the round-robin stage with a 2–1 record, subsequently winning through to the final playoff, in which she had a tough match againstMonika Wejnert, coming out a victor and earning a wildcard into the 2009 Australian Open.[38] After the match, Dokic said:
"Some players just don't have it mentally to go through all that hard work, which I find is not a problem with me."[39]
During the play-offs, Dokic said in a press conference that she had ambitions to play in the Fed Cup for Australia in 2009. Subsequently, she was awarded a main-draw entry into the inaugural Brisbane International event.
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Dokic was knocked out of theBrisbane International byAmélie Mauresmo in straight sets in the first round. Dokic was up 5–3 in the first set before Mauresmo came back to win the tiebreak 11–9. In the second set, Dokic was down 3–5 but rallied to lead 6–5 before Mauresmo won the set in a tiebreak, 7–5. Dokic then received a qualification wildcard into the Hobart International but withdrew before her first match because of an Achilles tendon injury.[40]
Dokic won her first round match at theAustralian Open againstTamira Paszek of Austria. It was her first major match win since 2003. She then defeated world No. 17,Anna Chakvetadze, in the second round, 6–4, 6–7, 6–3 and 11th-seededCaroline Wozniacki in the third round. This was the first time she had reached the fourth round of the Australian Open. Dokic then advanced to the quarterfinals of a Grand Slam tournament for the first time since 2002, after defeating 29th-seededAlisa Kleybanova. Dokic's run ended when she was defeated byDinara Safina in a three-sets quarterfinal. Because of this tournament, her ranking improved to world No. 91.
In an interview after her first-round win at the Australian Open, Dokic said that she still had no contact with her father, but was building relationships again with her mother and younger brother, and that she had been dating her boyfriend, Tin Bikić, for five years.[41]
InFed Cup, Australia was in the Fed Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I. Dokic defeated all three of her opponents in straight sets, Lee Jin-a of Korea, Suchanun Viratprasert of Thailand, and Diane Hollands of New Zealand. Australia advanced into the World Group II Playoffs in April. At theCellular South Cup in Memphis, Tennessee, she won two qualifying matches to reach the main draw, where she lost in the first round to top-seeded Wozniacki 1–6, 2–6 in 48 minutes.[citation needed]
Her next tournament was theIndian Wells Open, aPremier Mandatory event, where she lost to AmericanJill Craybas in the first round. Dokic received a wildcard for the main draw of another Premier Mandatory event, theMiami Open in Key Biscayne.[42] She defeated RomanianEdina Gallovits in the first round before losing to 13th-seeded Wozniacki in the second round. Dokic withdrew from theMPS Group Championships in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida[43] and theFamily Circle Cup in Charleston, citing fatigue. Dokic then won the second singles rubber of Australia's World Group II Fed Cup quarterfinal tie against Switzerland in Mildura, Australia.
Originally scheduled to play in theItalian Open in early May, she instead appeared as the No. 1 seed in the $100k event at Bucharest[44] but lost in the semifinals toAndrea Petkovic. She then participated on theWarsaw Open,[45] which was the last WTA Premier event before the French Open but lost in the first round to qualifierRaluca Olaru. She then played theFrench Open. In the first round, she beatKarolina Šprem, her first win in the French Open since 2003. In the second round she played world No. 4,Elena Dementieva. She led by 6–2, 4–3, before retiring due to a lower back injury. She also played doubles, partnering withAlisa Kleybanova, they defeatedPetra Cetkovská andCarla Suárez Navarro in the first round. They were scheduled to play world number ones in doubles,Cara Black andLiezel Huber, in the second round but withdrew because of the injury.
Her injury forced her to miss Wimbledon warming up tournaments, but Dokic still appeared atWimbledon. She lost against qualifierTatjana Malek in the first round 6–3, 5–7, 2–6, after serving 16 double faults. Dokic was then diagnosed as suffering fromglandular fever and had to withdraw from the Swedish Open inBåstad. She was ordered to rest for another fortnight and planned to get back on court on hard-court tournaments leading up toUS Open. However, she did not make any appearance at the2009 US Open Series.[citation needed]
She competed at theUS Open[46] but lost toKirsten Flipkens in the first round. The week later, she played at the $100k event at Biella where she is seeded fourth, but lost to Petra Martić in the second round. She then played at another $100k tournament at Sofia but again lost in the second round toAndrea Hlaváčková in straight sets. Two weeks later she played at another $100k+H tournament at Athens, Greece. She won the tournament by beatingEleni Daniilidou 6–2, 6–1 in the final. This was her first title in 2009 and her most significant title since 2002.[citation needed]
Dokic then travelled to France to play ITF level tournaments, started with Joué-lès-Tours, a $50k event where she was the top seed. She advanced to her second final of the year but lost toSofia Arvidsson by 2–6, 6–7. She then played at Poitiers, a $100k event, as the fourth seed. She made it to her third consecutive final and faced Sofia Arvidsson again. This time, she won 6–4, 6–4, clinching her second title in 2009. Dokic finished 2009 ranked world No. 56, her best showing since 2004.
Prior to the first Grand Slam event, Dokic participated in two Australian Open warm-up tournaments. She opened the season at theBrisbane International, where she lost to former world No. 1,Ana Ivanovic, in three sets in the first round. She then travelled to Hobart to play theHobart International where she defeatedElena Baltacha in the first round but lost to second seed,Shahar Pe'er, in a disappointing second-round match, 2–6, 2–6 with Dokic making over 40 unforced errors. She was seen breaking down on court as well as crying after this match. As well as the singles, Dokic also participated in the doubles event at this tournament, trying to start a new combination with compatriotAlicia Molik. However, the pair lost in the first round toChan Yung-jan andMonica Niculescu.
She then travelled to Melbourne to compete at theAustralian Open. Dokic was defeated there in the first round by 27th seed Alisa Kleybanova.[47] The loss caused her rank to drop to world No. 96. She also played doubles, partnering withPetra Kvitová, but the pair lost in the first round.
Dokic withdrew from thePattaya Open in Thailand andMalaysian Open due to a mysterious illness.[citation needed] She lost in the qualifying rounds ofMonterrey Open and the first round of theIndian Wells Open. She was then offered a wildcard into Miami Open but declined it due to another injury. Jelena then continued to withdraw from WTA Tour events inMarbella andBarcelona, Spain, andFes, Morocco, still troubled by injuries.[citation needed]
Her clay season started in May, where she played at a $50k tournament at Prague where she was seeded third. She lost in the quarterfinals toCorinna Dentoni. Her next tournament was theFrench Open, but she lost in the first round to 24th seedLucie Šafářová. She then travelled to Rome to participate at a $50k tournament but lost toAnna Tatishvili in the first round. The following week, she participated at a $100k tournament at Marseille, France. She reached the quarterfinals but lost to eventual championKlára Zakopalová.
She then played the qualification forWimbledon but lost in the second round toJulie Ditty in three sets, after committing 24 double faults, including five in the fifth game of the final set. Dokic then withdrew from a $100k tournament in Cuneo, Italy, with a wrist injury. The following week she withdrew from another one in Biarritz, France. She competed at a $50k tournament in Contrexéville, France winning the singles overOlivia Sanchez, thus claiming her first title in 2010. Partnering withSharon Fichman, she lost in the doubles finals. She then won her second straight title, in Bucharest at the $75kRuxandra Dragomir Open defeatingZuzana Ondrášková in the final. With this win, Dokic was back in the top 100, ranked 96. The next week, she participated at a $75k tournament in Vancouver, where she won her third straight title after defeatingVirginie Razzano in a two-sets final, capping a 15-match winning streak. Dokic has the most $50k or more titles in the ITF Circuit.
Though she returned to the top 100 after winning three tournaments and 15 matches in a row, Dokic lost in the first round qualifying draw of theUS Open toLaura Robson. Jelena then travelled to Asia to participate at two ITF tournaments but had disappointing result as she both lost in the first round of the 100k+H tournament in Ningbo, China, and 100k+H tournament in Tokyo, Japan. She then travelled back to Europe and participated at a 50k tournament in Joué-lès-Tours. She double-bageledEirini Georgatou in the first round and she beatKarolína Plíšková in the second round. In the quarterfinals, Jelena beatElitsa Kostova. Dokic was beaten in the semifinal byVesna Manasieva.[48]
Dokic won her first-round match in the $50k tournament in Saint-Raphael, France by beatingEva Birnerová. Jelena retired in her second-round match againstUrszula Radwańska leading 7–5, 0–2, with a suspected thigh injury. Dokic revealed that she had an elbow injury in the beginning of the year (possibly the reason she withdrew in tournaments such as Miami). Also, she explained that she did not take part in a lot of tournaments in the second half of the year to recover from injury and to deal with her coaching situations.[citation needed]
In December, Dokic participated in the Australian Open Wildcard Playoff tournament. In the round-robin stage, she won all three of her matches and a spot in the semifinal round where she defeated Alicia Molik. However, Dokic lost to Olivia Rogowska in the final. Despite missing out on a wildcard spot, the organisers awarded her a wildcard for the Australian Open main draw.[49] Dokic finished the year ranked 138.[50]
Dokic started her 2011 campaign by receiving three main-draw wildcards during the Australian summer, inBrisbane,Sydney andMelbourne. She comfortably won her first match in Brisbane against qualifierAnastasia Pivovarova but then lost to in-form, eventual finalist,Andrea Petkovic. After the match Dokic cited a stomach virus as the reason to the loss.[51] In Sydney, she lost toSvetlana Kuznetsova in the first round.[52]
In the Australian Open, Dokic easily dispatchedZuzana Ondrášková in the first round, but fell toBarbora Záhlavová-Strýcová in the second round. She also received a wildcard to participate in doubles, partnering withSally Peers where they faced 16th seed,Timea Bacsinszky andTathiana Garbin, in the first round. The pair lost in two sets.
At theOpen GdF Suez in Paris, Dokic won all three qualifying matches for a spot in the main draw. Dokic then upset the 30th-rankedLucie Šafářová, a 2010 finalist, for a spot in the second round. This victory was Dokic's first victory over a top-30 player since the 2009 Australian Open. She backed up her strong performance by defeating fifth seed and former doubles partner, Nadia Petrova in straight sets in the second round to advance to her first WTA quarterfinals appearance since the 2009 Australian Open. However, her run ended after Kim Clijsters beat her despite leading 3–0 in the first set, in a victory that brought Clijsters back toworld No. 1. Nevertheless, Dokic's strong performance in thePremier event brought Dokic back to the top 100, at No. 91, and a main-draw wildcard of theDubai Tennis Championships.
In the first round of Dubai, Dokic, hindered by illness, committed 41 unforced errors and 11 double faults to give victory to an in-form Flavia Pennetta losing. Following the loss, Dokic travelled to Doha to participate at the qualifying draw ofQatar Open. She comfortably won her first match but lost in the second match to fellow Australian,Jarmila Groth.
Dokic traveled toKuala Lumpur where she scored her biggest win of the year by upsetting world No. 5, 2010 French Open champion, and top seedFrancesca Schiavone in the first round, despite serving 15 double faults. This is her first win against a top-5 player since 2003, where she defeated then world number one player Kim Clijsters in Zurich. She then defeated Japan'sKurumi Nara in the second round, to advance to her second WTA quarterfinal this year. She reinforced this win by upsetting an in-formBojana Jovanovski, the eighth seed, in straight sets. This victory saw Dokic advance to her first WTA semifinals since Pan Pacific Open in Japan inFebruary 2004. Dokic faced a resurgentMichaëlla Krajicek of the Netherlands, who had defeated defending champion Alisa Kleybanova in the second round and prevailed to advance to her first WTA Tour singles final since theZürich Open inOctober 2003. She concluded the tournament by beating Lucie Šafářová in the final, after saving two championships points in the second set tiebreak and being down 1–3 in the final set. This was Dokic's first career title under Australian flag and first sinceJune 2002 where she won theBirmingham Classic. Her strong performance rose her ranking to world No. 61.[53]
Originally electing to strategically skip the qualifying stage ofIndian Wells to compete in a $100k tournament inthe Bahamas,[54] Dokic then withdrew from the $100k tournament. Dokic's next tournament wasMiami where she had to play the qualifying round. Dokic won both of her matches againstTatjana Malek andChristina McHale to advance to the main draw, where she fell to a resurgent former world No. 1,Dinara Safina in two sets.
Dokic then started her clay season campaign by participating atCharleston, where she was upset in the first round by qualifierAnna Tatishvili, in three close sets. She then participated atFes as the sixth seed but was forced to withdraw due to a viral illness. This also subsequently forced Dokic to withdraw fromEstoril and missed bothMadrid andRome. She finalised her preparation for theFrench Open by playing atStrasbourg. She defeated Fes finalistSimona Halep in the first round in just 48 minutes, dropping only one point on serve in the second set. Dokic then fell to resurgent former child prodigyMirjana Lučić. Despite this, Dokic's victory over Halep will ensure that she will reach the top 60 for the first time since 2009, with a year-high ranking of 59. InRoland Garros, Dokic lost toVera Dushevina in the first round. She also participated in doubles partnering withMelanie Oudin but the pair lost in the first round toAlexandra Dulgheru andMagdaléna Rybáriková. In spite of an early exit from the clay Grand Slam, Dokic's ranking rose to No. 57.
After Roland Garros, Dokic participated atCopenhagen as the seventh seed but lost to a qualifier,Galina Voskoboeva, in the first round. Dokic then rebounded with a victory overAlla Kudryavtseva at's-Hertogenbosch in two sets. She then upset fourth seed Flavia Pennetta in the second round to avenge her loss in Dubai, ensuring her third quarterfinal appearance of the year. In the quarterfinals, Dokic faced Swedish playerJohanna Larsson whom she dispatched, setting up a semifinal berth againstRomina Oprandi, who had upset world No. 2, Kim Clijsters, in the second round. She won the match 6–4, 2–0 (ret.) to ensure her second final appearance of the year against Roberta Vinci. Dokic was edged out in three close sets. Despite the loss, Dokic's run to the final ensured that for the first time since October 2004, she will be ranked in the top 50—at world No. 45.[55]
Dokic's next tournament wasWimbledon where she lost to sixth seedFrancesca Schiavone in the first round.[56] despite being a favourite to upset.[57] She also participated in doubles, partnering withBojana Jovanovski but fell to third seedLiezel Huber andLisa Raymond in the first round.
Dokic's next scheduled tournament was Budapest, but she decided to withdraw to recover from a hamstring injury. The same injury forced her to withdraw from the tournament in Bad Gastein and Baku as well. Dokic then participated in Washington as the fourth seed, but her lack of match play saw her fall in the first round to China'sZhang Shuai. She played inSan Diego, but was defeated in three tight sets toAyumi Morita with her 15 double faults being highlighted as the main concern for the match. Since then, Dokic did not play any further matches due to a shoulder injury. Despite this setback, Dokic took part in the main draw of theUS Open. She reached the second round but lost to Jelena Janković, in straight sets.
On 27 September, Dokic went back to Belgrade, Serbia, and reconciled with her father.[58] Dokic then participated in the qualifying round ofLinz in October but retired, after losing the first set 3–6 in the first qualifying match toEvgeniya Rodina due to the shoulder injury that had been bothering her since July. This turned out to be Dokic's last match in 2011.
Dokic began her 2012 season inAuckland where she lost in the first round toMona Barthel.[59] Then, she received a wildcard to compete inSydney. In the first round, she defeated fellow AustralianIsabella Holland to set up a clash against eight seededMarion Bartoli in the second round where she lost in two sets. She also played doubles withSofia Arvidsson where she reached the quarterfinals before losing toRaquel Kops-Jones andAbigail Spears. One week later, Dokic took part in theAustralian Open. She began her campaign by defeatingAnna Chakvetadze in the first round. In the second round, she met Bartoli for the second time in two weeks. Dokic's nine double faults (some at crucial points) cost her and she lost in straight sets.[60] She also participated in doubles and mixed doubles competitions, partnering withKateryna Bondarenko andPaul Hanley, respectively, but lost in the first rounds of both.
Dokic travelled to Bogotá where she was the fourth seed, but lost to Paula Ormaechea. In Monterrey, she lost to eventual runner upAlexandra Cadanțu. As the defending champion and seventh seed at the Malaysian Open in Kuala Lumpur, Dokic started her campaign successfully, defeating Kristina Mladenovic but then lost against fellow AustralianOlivia Rogowska, 6–3, 4–6, 6–7.[61] Since she had failed to defend her points, she dropped out of the top 100.
She then suffered three consecutive first round losses at Indian Wells, Miami and Charleston, losing toGisela Dulko,Ekaterina Makarova andGalina Voskoboeva. It was later revealed, Dokic had suffered from a continuing right wrist injury since the beginning of the year, explaining her poor results and retirements. Dokic was set to return to tournament play at the ITF Challenger tour in September, but was forced to cancel all commitments due to continuing problems with her wrist. In November 2012, it was announced Dokic had undergone wrist surgery and would miss the Australian summer of events.
In May 2013, Dokic said in an interview that she was training for a comeback attempt at smaller tournaments using an injury protected ranking.[62] Again, in October 2013, she said that after a wrist operation she was training withTodd Woodbridge to try for a wildcard entry into the2014 Australian Open.[63] Dokic entered the Australian Open Wildcard Playoff in December 2013 but lost in the first round toJarmila Gajdošová.[64] She received a wildcard to play alongsideStorm Sanders at thedoubles competition; in the first round, the team lost to Magdaléna Rybáriková/Stefanie Vögele in what was Dokic's final appearance in a rating event.
After keeping a low profile for a few years following her retirement, Dokic steadily increased her work in the Australian tennis media in the late 2010s, and became a well-known face in tennis coverage in Australia.[citation needed]
She was engaged by Tennis Australia as a coach in 2014, and was pictured coaching rising Australian starDaria Gavrilova at a training camp in Italy in June 2014.[65] She also wrote forAustralian Tennis Magazine in 2014.[66]
During the 2013-2014 Australian summer, Dokic was a special expert commentator for theSeven Network, including at Melbourne Park.
In January 2017, she was a commentator forFox Sports at the Australian Open.[67]
In 2018 theNine Network signed Jelena Dokic for their newly acquiredTennis Australia broadcast agreement, where she has been a part of everyAustralian Open since their first in 2019 and regularly provides analysis on key women's and men's feature matches for the network's primary channel in prime time. She has received widespread critical acclaim for her work and also saw her profile further heightened.
Dokic also commentates on the other Grand Slam tournaments for Nine and appears on several magazine programs and topical shows.
In 2021 while commentating onWimbledon forChannel Nine, Dokic praised the supportAshleigh Barty had received from her parents, prompting Dokic to become so emotional she worried she would ''fall apart'' live on air.[21]
During the2024 Australian Open, in a post-match interview, Dokic askedAryna Sabalenka for one of her extra towels after her quarterfinal win. She did so again after her semifinal win, this time asking Sabalenka to sign it so that it could be auctioned off for kids and women affected bydomestic violence. This coincided with ATP and Australian Open organisers allowingAlexander Zverev to continue competing in the Men's Draw while facing domestic violence trials in Germany.[68][69]
Jelena has presented on Nine's lifestyle and travel program Postcards.
In August 2025, Dokic received the Silver Logie Award for Best Factual or Documentary Program at the 65th Annual TV Week Logie Awards, for her work onUnbreakable: The Jelena Dokic Story.
Dokic's autobiography,Unbreakable (ISBN 9780143784227), co-written with sports journalist Jess Halloran,[70] in which she relates the story of her life, career, and the years of physical and mental abuse by her father, was published on 13 November 2017.[71] It topped the Australian book charts within the first day of release, and was published in Europe in January 2018.[citation needed]
In 2023, again co-written with Halloran, she publishedFearless: Finding the power to thrive, which tells of how she has survived poverty, trauma, and family violence.[72]
A documentary film based on her autobiography, calledUnbreakable: The Jelena Dokic Story, co-directed by Halloran and Ivan O'Mahoney,[73] was released in Australian cinemas on 7 November 2024. Luke Buckmaster ofThe Guardian praised the film, giving it 4 out of 5 stars,[70] as did Garry Maddox ofThe Sydney Morning Herald.[74] Dokic was interviewed onABC Radio National about her life, the book, and the film, on 8 November 2024.[7]
By the age of 21, Dokic suffered from depression, anxiety,PTSD, and aneating disorder.[74]
In 2023, Dokic waged a public campaign calling out online trolls who targeted her about her weight and fat-shamed her.[75] Dokic has stated that the comments made about her looks and weight have affected her mental health over the years. After appearing on the Australian Open coverage, Dokic stated that she received an uptick of abusive and harassing online comments from trolls.[76]
In 2021, Dokic separated from her partner of 19 years, Tin Bikic.[77]
| W | F | SF | QF | #R | RR | Q# | P# | DNQ | A | Z# | PO | G | S | B | NMS | NTI | P | NH |
| Australia | Yugoslavia / Serbia & Mtn | Australia | ||||||||||||||
| Tournament | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | SR | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | 3R | 1R | 1R | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | Q2 | QF | 1R | 2R | 2R | 0 / 8 | 8–8 |
| French Open | 1R | 2R | 3R | QF | 2R | 1R | A | A | A | A | 2R | 1R | 1R | A | 0 / 9 | 9–9 |
| Wimbledon | QF | SF | 4R | 4R | 3R | 1R | A | Q1 | A | A | 1R | Q2 | 1R | A | 0 / 8 | 17–8 |
| US Open | 1R | 4R | 4R | 2R | 2R | 1R | A | A | A | A | 1R | Q1 | 2R | A | 0 / 8 | 9–8 |
| Win–loss | 6–4 | 9–4 | 8–4 | 8–3 | 4–3 | 0–3 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 5–4 | 0–2 | 2–4 | 1–1 | 0 / 33 | 43–33 |
| Australia | Yugoslavia / Serbia & Mtn | Australia | ||||||||||||||||
| Tournament | 1999 | 2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007 | 2008 | 2009 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | SR | W–L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australian Open | 3R | 3R | 2R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | 1R | 1R | A | 1R | 0 / 7 | 5–7 |
| French Open | A | 3R | F | A | 3R | A | A | A | A | A | 2R | A | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 10–5 |
| Wimbledon | 3R | 3R | 3R | A | 2R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 7–5 |
| US Open | 1R | 2R | 2R | A | 1R | A | A | A | A | A | A | A | 1R | A | A | A | 0 / 5 | 2–5 |
| Win–loss | 4–3 | 7–4 | 9–4 | 0–0 | 3–3 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 0–0 | 1–1 | 0–1 | 0–4 | 0–1 | 0–0 | 0–1 | 0 / 22 | 24–22 |
| Result | Year | Championshi | Surface | Partner | Opponents | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 2001 | French Open | Clay |  Conchita Martínez | Virginia Ruano Pascual Paola Suárez | 2–6, 1–6 |
Ako bih nešto mogla da promenim, to bi bio odlazak iz Australije. To je bila greška, možda najveća koju smo ikada napravili! Drago mi je što je cela država sada stala uz nju – jasna je Podnarova, inače Hrvatica iz Slavonije.
We were lucky if we had bread to eat. At times, we had nowhere to sleep.
She was born in Croatia to Serbian parents who fled to Serbia as war in the Balkans escalated. In Serbia they lived in poverty, in a shed infested with rats.
Jelena opens up on how she has survived trauma and heartache to establish herself as a leading tennis commentator and motivational speaker... how she overcame adversity, poverty and violence to rise to the top of the tennis world. [From the publisher's blurb]
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | ITF Junior World Champion 1998 | Succeeded by |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
