The second part of Novak Djokovic’s fourth round clash on Monday saw the Serbian drop his first set of this year’s tournament.
Djokovic boasted a two-set lead over Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz on Sunday evening before their match was suspended due to the curfew in place. Resuming proceedings on Center Court, he continued to be firmly tested by his opponent before prevailing 7-6(6), 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4.
The seven-time champion encountered a blip whilst serving at 5-6 down in the third set where he got broken for the first time which handed Hurkacz the set. However, he restored his order midway through the fourth frame by breaking as he moved to game away from victory. Storming to three match points, he converted his first after a shot from his opponent crashed into the net.
“Big credit to Hubert for playing an amazing match. He put up a great performance,” said Djokovic.
“Honestly I don’t recall the last time I felt this miserable on returning games. He has one of the best serves in the world and it’s difficult to read it on one of the quickest surfaces in the sport.
“It was not enjoyable for me.
“In the important moments, I was fortunate to win that first set. This match could have gone a different way but I held my nerves when it mattered.”
Djokovic’s latest encounter was his 100th match played at Wimbledon which is a milestone that has only been previously achieved by Roger Federer and Jimmy Connors on the men’s Tour. It is the 14th time in his career he has reached the quarter-finals of the tournament and his 56th at a major event. He is also the third-oldest man in the Open Era to reach the last eight at SW19.
“I feel a great connection with this court, every match that I win, every time I step on the court I feel more confident to play the match and hopefully the love affair continues for a long time.” He said of playing on center Court where he hasn’t lost a match for 10 years.
Currently on a 32-match winning streak when it comes to tour-level matches played on grass, Djokovic will next take on Russia’s Andrey Rublev. On Sunday Rublev ousted Alexander Bublik in a five-set epic. It will be the fifth meeting between the two with the world No.2 winning three out of the four previous meetings.
“Novak is one of the best players on grass, the player who last couple of years almost doesn’t lose on grass,” the Russian commented.
“In my case, there is nothing to say. I just have to go there and try to fight and do as best as I can.”
As for tactics going into the upcoming encounter, Djokovic is refusing to give any of his secrets away.
“He’s (Rublev) a different player to Hurkacz for sure. Very powerful, very quick ground strokes, loves to dictate. I’m not going to talk too much about tactics – I will keep that to myself. The matches are going to get harder, and I have to get ready for that.” He concluded.
