Dokic wants to play for Australia
^{By AAP - November 18, 2000}

Jelena Dokic performed another backflip over her tennis future, saying she would continue to play for Australia.

On receiving her Yugoslav passport yesterday, Dokic was quoted as saying she wanted to represent Yugoslavia rather than Australia.

But today Dokic denied pledging her future to Yugoslavia.

"I did not say that. I am playing for Australia," Dokic responded when questioned over her future.

"I am Serbian, I was born here and I came here for one reason alone and that is to get this passport."

Dokic represented Australia at the Sydney Olympics but was beaten in the bronze medal playoff by American Monica Seles.

She added that she would not be eligible anyway to play for Yugoslavia for the next three years.

Dusan Grujic, head of the Serbian Tennis Association, said yesterday that if Dokic wanted to switch allegiance she would have to spend a period playing for neither national team.

Dokic would keep her Australian passport and have dual citizenship, he said.

In Sydney yesterday, a spokeswoman for Tennis Australia said president Geoff Pollard was hoping to persuade Dokic not to break ties with her adopted country.

Dokic said she did not think she would travel to Australia for a while but hinted she would play in the Australian Open in January.

Without naming the tournament, Dokic said she would participate in an upcoming national tournament in Australia.

"Now I will take some days off, go around and see things," she said.

Dokic arrived in Belgrade with her mother Ljiljana, who also received a Yugoslav passport, while her father Damir and brother Srdjan remained in Sydney.

Yugoslav Interior Minister Zoran Zivkovic, who presented Dokic and her mother with the passports, said Damir and Srdjan would get Yugoslav citizenship next week.

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