World Tour is an unbelievably interesting 3×3 competition attracting the noise of spectators in the stands. The idea of making such a glamorous set of tournaments started to implement 11 years ago. A huge number of games in World Tour will stay for a long time in the heads of wild fans who truly love this game. Let’s check the history of the heroes of our today’s story – Novi Sad.
How did first Novi Sad’s appearance on World Tour look like?
First-ever appearance of Novi Sad on the Masters in the World Tour was in the Romanian capital Bucharest in 2013. Dusan Bulut, Marko Zdero, Nikola Ugrica, and Marko Savic represented the Serbian team in that competition. Passing the group stage was a great result, but the guys wanted to go further. Dusan and his teammates did exactly that beating Ljubljana and Bucharest in the semifinal and final respectively.
After winning Masters, the Serbian guys competed in Final Masters held in Istanbul. Nebojsa Boskovic replaced Marko Savic in the tournament where Novi Sad reached the big final game. Unfortunately, Slovenian team Brezovica was too strong and pulled out a 19-13 victory.
How successful was Novi Sad during the second campaign in glamorous competition?
Following the debut season in World Tour, guys from Novi Sad gathered again in an attempt to chase the title in 2014. Dusan Bulut, Marko Zdero, Dejan Majstorovic, and Marko Savic formed a mighty quartet to do something like that.
Winning Prague Masters was a ticket for Final Masters organized in Tokyo at the end of the season. The guys in orange jersey lost surprisingly first game in Japan against Denver, but found a way to rise again. Pulling out a victory over Brazilian Santos was enough to qualify for the quarterfinals. Afterwards, Dusan Bulut and his teammates were simply too strong for all opponents.
Finally, defeating Canadian Saskatoon with 21-11 brought Novi Sad its first anthological title in World Tour.
What occurred in Novi Sad’s third season on World Tour?
The same members were playing for the team from Serbia in the 2015 season hoping they could repeat the success from the previous one.
Winning the inaugural Masters in a campaign in Manila was proof they were going in the right direction. Taking 7th and 3rd place at Prague and Beijing Masters challenged their self-confidence a little bit. Subsequently, guys in orange shirts won Rio de Janeiro Masters and return to winning ways right ahead start of Abu Dhabi Masters.
Beating Slovenian team Kranj in the final with 17-14 was a confirmation of excellent form and consistency in Novi Sad’s performances.
What happened in the fourth season with Bulut and his teammates?
The appetite of the Serbian team became very big after two consecutive titles won in the most popular international club competition in 3×3 basketball. Bulut, Zdero, Majstorovic, and Savic remained members of the roster who believed they could go all the way once again. In Beijing, Marko Dugosija changed Dejan Majstorovic in the squad.
Lifting trophies in Utsunomiya, Debrecen, and Beijing set expectations very high before the beginning of Abu Dhabi Masters. Unfortunately, the Japanese Hamamatsu defeated Serbian players and stopped their winning streak in the semifinal of a tournament held in UAE (United Arab Emirates).
Which place did Novi Sad take in Final Masters in 2017?
Following the fifth edition of the World Tour, players from the Serbian team had a big motive to reclaim the status of the best team on the planet. Dusan Bulut, Marko Zdero, Dejan Majstorovic, and Marko Savic got new teammate Nikola Pavlovic who strengthened the roster ahead of new challenges.
Victories in Utsunomiya, Prague, and Lausanne were a good introduction to Final Masters which was scheduled to take place in Beijing.
Despite a solid regular part of the season, their compatriots were too good in the final fixture in the capital of China. Zemun won the game with 21-19 thanks to one of the most spectacular shots in the history of 3×3 performed by Bogdan Dragovic.
How did the guys from Novi Sad react to the disappointing loss in the final in 2017?
The desires of Novi Sad’s supporters were bigger since Tamas Ivosev joined the team ahead of the start of the 2018 season. Marko Zdero was the second option in the roster, so Tamas became a really important member and part of the squad in the legendary seventh edition of the World Tour. His athleticism and strength under the rim were a real threat to any opponent on the planet.
Novi Sad won Masters in Saskatoon, Prague, Lausanne, Debrecen, and Hyderabad.
Finally, the team went to Beijing to confirm the superiority and domination shown during the regular part of the season.
After passing the group stage comfortably, Dusan and his teammates faced Slovenian Piran in the quarterfinal and beat them with 15-11. Zemun got revenge from the previous season in the semis with 21-13, so the Serbian team reached the final which they played with Riga. Riga was defeated with 20-18 for another Novi Sad’s crown.
How did Novi Sad’s players handle the pressure of winning in 2019?
Novi Sad’s supporters hoped that the amazing winning streak of 32 games from the previous season will continue in 2019.
It was decided that the same five players will represent the Serbian team in an attempt to defend a title. Three wins in Doha Masters raised the number of games where Novi Sad went undefeated to 35, but Liman turned out to be the next obstacle. Another team from Novi Sad led by Maksim Kovacevic pulled out a 20-17 victory and eliminated our heroes from the competition.
However, the guys from Novi Sad didn’t stop believing after one failure as they won the Chengdu and Mexico City Masters.
A couple of poorer results were a logical thing since it’s not possible to maintain the same form over two years, but Novi Sad prepared very well for Utsunomiya Final.
Suffering defeat in the first round against Princeton was a huge fuel for Bulut and friends to show they were still capable of winning major trophies. Four wins followed that defeat with the final one against Princeton. Revenge was served with 21-17 in the final game for the fourth trophy in their history. The team in the final tournament involved Bulut, Ivosev, Majstorovic, and Savic.
How good was the pandemic 2020 campaign for Novi Sad?
The clinching trophy in the previous season was the peak of Novi Sad’s success in the second decade of the 21st century. The players needed to find motivation and inspiration for the next challenges and that’s something hardest in sport. The reality proved that as heroes of our story didn’t win any Masters in the World Tour’s ninth edition.
Dusan Bulut, Tamas Ivosev, Dejan Majstorovic, Marko Savic, and Nebojsa Boskovic rotated throughout the season, but the highest phase they reached was the semifinal during the campaign. In the Final in Jeddah, a team from Novi Sad lost to Riga in the semifinal with 18-15.
How did Novi Sad’s roster look like in 2021?
After a relatively bad previous season, it was time for reconstruction of the squad and strategy for future competitions. Uros Cica, Tamas Ivosev, Dejan Janjic, Marko Milakovic, Strahinja Milosevic, and Dusan Bulut were players included in the roster for the 2021 season.
Following taking 2nd place in Doha, team Novi Sad finished 10th on two next Masters in Lausanne and Debrecen. Eventually, a tournament in Hungary turned out to be the last team’s performance in World Tour.
One of the pioneers of this super thrilling sport is team Novi Sad from Serbia. According to many 3×3 experts and statistics, this is the most successful team in the history of the World Tour. Is there going to be a new squad like this? The future will give answers, for sure.
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