Beauty with Brains- that’s Jelena Ristic for you! She is elegant and is also said to be fluent in 17 languages, including English and Italian. Sounds good to be an ideal candidate for Miss Universe, right? Do you know that Novak Djokovic once publicly hailed his wife, Jelena as Miss Universe? It happened in 2008 at the Masters Cup in Shanghai and as soon as he said it, the tennis world erupted with the news of Djokovic dating a Miss Universe. Did she really win the honor?

Jelena was present in the stands when Djokovic won the Masters Cup in 2008. Later on, during the post-match interview session when Djokovic was asked to introduce his Jelena, he said, “The girl who sat beside my coach was a Miss Universe of 2006.” However, that was pretty much far from a reality, because Miss Universe 2006 was Puerto Rican actress, Zuleyka Rivera. He later on clarified that he merely meant the term in jest.

Both Djokovic and Jelena first met each other in high school in the 1990s and they started dating each other in 2005. The couple got engaged in September 2013 and on 10 July 2014 they tied the knot in a beautiful ceremony on Sveti Stefan in Montenegro. They recently celebrated their tenth wedding anniversary and Djokovic even dedicated a heartfelt poem to his wife on this special occasion. Jelena gave birth to their first child, Stefan in October 2014, and then almost three years later, they welcomed their baby girl, Tara. However, their journey was not always a bed full of roses.

At the beginning of their relationship, they used to struggle a bit due to their hectic schedules. Jelena went to study abroad and after completion of her degree, she got a high-intensity job that put a strain on their relationship. Eventually, she had to leave the job and later on, became the National Director of the Novak Djokovic Foundation. She has been Novak’s biggest supporter over the years and has seen all of his ups and downs. Here are some of the beautiful moments capturing the most beloved couple.

“She looked like an angel” – Djokovic revealed his thoughts on seeing Jelena for the first time on the wedding day

In July 2014, when the couple finally got married to each other after staying with each other for many years, they couldn’t hold their emotions. Recalling some of those moments Novak said, “Seeing her for the first time in her wedding dress, smiling and walking towards me… She looked like an angel.” He said he was trying to be present in that moment and memorize it. Jelena was pregnant with their first child at that time. Djokovic said he was fully focused on her and her smile, and their baby. There couldn’t have been a more “perfect moment” for the tennis star.

Jelena revealed that she was a bit “nervous” and everything seemed a bit “blur” to her. “I  was seeing him through tears and immediately started crying when I saw him. I was just so happy and probably being pregnant makes it quite difficult to control the emotions,” said Ristic. She said she is quite blessed to have him in his life and couldn’t have asked for a better part than Djokovic.

Even Djokovic has time and again spoken about how happy he is for having such a wonderful partner in his life. He even thinks ever since he got married to her and became a father he hasn’t lost many matches and won many tournaments. Incredible love story, isn’t it?