Jelena Dokic claims her father Damir once openly told her he "would do it all again" as the 2000 Wimbledon semifinalist also admits she simply "did not feel the need" to attend her late dad's funeral.
When the former Australian tennis star publicly disclosed in 2009 that she was mentally and physically abused by her father, it was only then explained why her career path didn't go as expected after she made the Wimbledon semifinal at the age of 17.
Since then, Dokic has detailed numerous times the mental and physical abuse she had to endure after losses, and even after some wins. To this day, the 42-year-old is impacted by the abuse she was going through for two decades before ending any contact with her father.
“I don’t think he ever loved me. I’m a firm believer that you can’t do that to someone, especially a child, if you love them. He was getting more and more violent, more and more out of control. You lose your worth and you don’t think you’re enough. And you’re constantly also told that you’re not. And a lot worse things," Dokic said, via Woman's Day.
Dokic: He said he'd do it all again
Damir Dokic received a strong public response after he was first accused of physically and mentally abusing his daughter – he even spent some time in jail.
“In fact, he said he would do it all again," the 2000 Wimbledon semifinalist added.
As mentioned above, Dokic cut ties with her father long ago. And after Damir passed away at the age of 47 in May, she didn't attend his funeral.
“I didn’t feel like I needed to or wanted to go. I kind of feel like that’s the end of that chapter. It’s the end. It’s done," the former six-time WTA champion admitted.
Dokic officially retired from pro tennis in 2014 and has since worked in tennis broadcasting but also served as a mental health ambassador.
