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The development of tennis in China is moving in the right direction, and the country has a better chance than ever of seeing new top players in the future, said Novak Djokovic, the world’s No. 1 male tennis player.

During an interview with People’s Daily Online on Oct. 11, Djokovic expressed his strong affection for China and Chinese fans, thanking the latter for their continuous support, which he says encourages him to work hard on the tennis court.

“All my impressions of China are positive! Every time I land in Beijing or Shanghai, the first thing I [receive] when I step out of the airport is Chinese fans’ strong support, which gives me great push and motivation for the rest of the tournament," Djokovic noted.

As a frequent visitor to China, Djokovic praised China’s efforts in promoting tennis, adding that Chinese tennis is undeniably moving in a promising direction.

“Tennis in China has developed swiftly in the last couple of years. Now China has more male players such as Wu Di and Zhang Ze whose rankings are around 100 in the world, which is quite high. [China] just needs a little bit of patience, as [achievements in tennis] are not something that happen overnight. If China continues to support the professional tournaments as it is doing now, I’m sure there will be a bigger chance to have new top players in both men’s and women’s tournaments,” Djokovic said.

Apart from sharing experience with Chinese tennis players, Djokovic also hopes to promote his foundation, which he established to help children in need.

“The Djokovic foundation has focused on early childhood education since 2011. For now, we only focus on Serbia, but we are considering spreading this awareness, and hopefully being active as a foundation somewhere else. Maybe China will be the first country to [promote] our foundation,” Djokovic said.

As the world No. 1 player in men’s tennis singles, Djokovic is considered one of the greatest tennis players of all time.