Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts after winning a point during his men's singles tennis match against Dominic Thiem of Austria at the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament in Shanghai October 8, 2014. [Photo/Agencies]

World No 1 Novak Djokovic welcomes baby boy

Djokovic delights his fans at Shanghai Masters

PARIS -- World No. 1 Novak Djokovic will try to defend his title as well as the world No. 1 position against Roger Federer and other world-class tennis players at the BNP Paribas Masters starting Monday amid the joy of becoming a father.

"We were expecting a child for nine months. It was a very long time for me," the top-seeded Serbian told a pre-tournament interview at the Palais Omnisports de Paris-Bercy on Monday afternoon.

"It wasn't like a distraction to my career and to my tennis. In contrary, I was very much looking forward to becoming parents and to living this joyful moment together."

According to Serbian media, Djokovic's wife Jelena gave birth to a baby boy named Stefan late on last Tuesday, and the 27-year- old netman responded at twitter, calling it "our baby angel."

"It happened almost a week ago," he told the press in Paris. " Luckily I was there and it didn't interfere with my tennis schedule. It was the most beautiful thing that ever happened in my life and her life, definitely."

Djokovic has no plan of taking some time off from work though he now has a son to raise.

"I will try to have my family travel with me as much as they can, obviously. For me, it's important to participate in my child' s life as much as I can, in his development, in his growing up, in his childhood," he said.

"If I can, I would like to be with him every single day and with my wife, but sometimes that's not possible, like this week for example, or London (for the ATP Finals), because the baby is too young to travel yet.

"But starting from next year, we'll try to be together. It's not easy, the kind of lifestyle that a tennis player has. There is a lot of traveling, a lot of hotels, a lot of planes.

"It's not, let's say, the healthiest option for a baby, of course...But again, we'll try to manage this situation," he added.

He would learn from other parents of tennis, like the second- rated Roger Federer, a father of two pair of twins. "I'll try to talk with him and get some tips and necessary experiences that can help in my case," he said.

The Serbian emphasized again that being a father will not do anything wrong about his career as a tennis player: "I hope that it's going to affect positively on my career."

"My wife has, thank God, a lot of understanding for what I do and she's a great support," he said. "Of course they (wife and baby) are my main priority, and they are definitely, in terms of that, that life will change, but in terms of scheduling, the tennis, my own passion for the sport, there is nothing that is going to change."