"Novak Djokovic vs Jelena Ostapenko would be hilarious"; "Need Ana Ivanovic to come out of retirement" - Serb's late United Cup entry excites fans

Novak Djokovic's last-minute entry into the United Cup has delighted tennis fans so much that they now demand Ana Ivanovic to come out of retirement so she can play alongside her compatriot.

The United Cup's second edition will start on December 29 this year and conclude on 7 January 2024. Teams from 18 countries will take part in the tournament. During the group stages, the teams will be divided into six groups of three each with a round-robin format.

A match will have three ties, with a country's top-ranked men and women players participating in the singles tie. If the teams facing each other remain unseparated after the first two ties, the rubber will conclude with a mixed-doubles match.

United Cup's first edition was played between 29 December 2022 and 8 January 2023, with the USA emerging as the winners. Serbia will make their debut this year as they didn't participate last year.

While the tournament's draw is yet to come out, it recently came to light that Novak Djokovic has signed on to participate in the tournament at the last minute. Naturally, it delighted fans to no end, with one expressing hope of watching Djokovic compete against someone like Jelena Ostapenko for the sheer entertainment it would offer.

"I'm going to need this to be true and please please please can Latvia be in their group because I personally think Djokovic vs Ostapenko would be hilarious entertainment," the fan wrote.

Tennis junkies also urged his compatriot and former doubles partner Ana Ivanovic to come out of retirement.

"That's cool. Time to comeback, Ana," journalist Jose Morgado tweeted.

Another fan chimed in, saying:

"I want @anaivanovic to come of retirement just for this one. Jelena Jankovic, too."

Here are a few more reactions from X (formerly Twitter):

Reactions from Reddit:

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"We go back a long time, we're friends" - Novak Djokovic on his relationship with Ana Ivanovic

Hopman Cup

Ivanovic retired from professional tennis in 2016 but not before making some fun on-court memories with Novak Djokovic. The 24-time Grand Slam champion reacted to Ivanovic's farewell, saying:

"I was very emotional when I watched it, simply because I've known Ana since we were five years old. We go back a long time. We're friends, colleagues. You know, we've shared many moments together on the tour — in the junior circuit in Serbia, internationally. We've grown up together and our families have known each other." (via Tennis Channel)

The childhood friends represented Serbia at various international tennis tournaments. Though Serbia lost the 2013 Hopman Cup title bout to Spain, Djokovic and Ivanovic made the event memorable by dancing to Gangnam Style.