Djokovic Qualifies For Wimbledon Open Quarter-Finals
Tennis legend Novak Djokovic fought back from a first set defeat to record a 1-6 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over Alex de Minaur to book a place in the Wimbledon Open quarter-finals on Monday.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion endured a poor start which led to a 1-6 defeat before bouncing back to earn a deserved victory in an encounter that lasted three hours, and 18 minutes on Centre Court.
He committed 16 unforced errors, including four double faults in the opener.
Djokovic broke immediately at the start of the second set but then became bogged down in a game lasting nearly 19 minutes, which De Minaur won on his sixth break point.
The third set went with serve until the ninth game, when De Minaur dragged a forehand wide to concede the crucial break.
De Minaur found new inspiration in the fourth set, surging into a 4-1 lead but faltered at the crucial stage to allow Djokovic to advance.
Djokovic was delighted to qualify for the last eight of the tournament in the presence of Rafael Nadal, as he continued his search for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title
He said: “It’s probably the first time he’s watching me and I’ve won the match. The last couple I lost, so good to break the curse.
“No, it’s great, obviously, great to have Roger, a huge champion and someone that I admired and respected a lot.
“We shared the stage for so many years, and it’s great to have him back.
Djokovic admitted that de Minaur provided a tough test in the encounter.
He said: “There was a lot of cat and mouse play, and a lot of slices. He’s one of the quickest, if not the quickest players on the tour, and on the grass where the ball bounces low, it’s extremely difficult to play someone like him if you’re not feeling the ball really well.
“He exposes all your weaknesses. I was very pleased to hang in tough at the right moments and win this game.
“Alex has been an established top 10, or 15, player for the last couple of years.
“I’ve never faced him on this surface. I was slightly nervous coming into this match and that reflected on my game in the first set. It was a very difficult encounter.”
Djokovic will now take on Flavio Cobolli in the quarter-finals on Wednesday.
Djokovic Qualifies For Wimbledon Open Quarter-Finals is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
