Dusan Lajovic

Dusan Lajovic is someone who stands out in the world of tennis for an interesting reason. In a sport all about the individual, his best showings have arguably come as a team player.

Lajovic's pro career, which started in 2007, hasn't been filled with a number of highlight reels. Like many other players, the Serbian has spent a lot of time grafting in the background.

He had to wait 7 years to make it to a Grand Slam main draw for the first time. And he's only won three titles in his playing career; 1 singles and 2 doubles.

But he is a key part of Serbia's Davis Cup team, where his performances have been praised by none other than Novak Djokovic himself.

And given he's made over $7 million in prize money from the sport, it's fair to say Lajovic hasn't done too badly either.

His first and only singles title came in 2019 at the Croatia Open, an ATP 250 event. And his two doubles titles came in the 2015 Istanbul Open and the 2019 Chengdu Open; both of these are also ATP 250 events.

He also finished runner-up in the 2019 Monte Carlo Masters in the singles draw. And he also made the final of the 2014 Croatia Open in the men's doubles draw.

Lajovic's style of play is best suited to clay courts; 2 of his three titles also came on clay. Even in the Futures and Challenger tour, he's largely also been successful on clay courts.

His style of play largely revolves around being on the baseline. There, he is able to play well either on his forehead or even his backhand.

His service game is also especially effective on clay; he can generate a nice kick on his serve that maes it harder to pick on red soil.

Perhaps it is little surprise then that his best Grand Slam showing came in the 2019 French Open. There he reached the quarterfinals in the men's doubles draw.

In singles tennis, his best Grand Slam showings have been fourth round appearances at the Australian Open and again, the French Open.

It is probably not the kind of career he envisioned having when he started playing the sport at 7 years old. But that doesn't mean it's been entirely devoid of success either.

He's been a key part of Serbia's Davis Cup sides in recent years. What's more, he even played a key role in their eventual win in the ATP Cup over Spain in 2020.