Novak Djokovic lifted the ‘curse’ put on him by Roger Federer by winning in front of the Swiss on Centre Court. Eight-time Wimbledon winner Djokovic made it through to the quarter-finals with a hard-fought win over Alex de Minaur on Monday after being trounced in the opening set.
Djokovic was on the ropes in the early stages of his match with the 11th seed as he struggled with the windy conditions. BBC commentator John McEnroe called it ‘the worst set of tennis Djokovic has played in years’ as De Minaur stormed it 6-1.
But like great champions do, Djokovic found something even on an off day as he ground out a 1-6 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory in front of his family, his team of coaches and former rival Federer watching on from the best seats in the house.
During his on-court interview, with Federer stood close by in the Royal Box, Djokovic said: “It’s probably the first time he’s watched me and I won the match! The last couple I lost, so it’s good to break the curse!
“It’s great to have Roger here, someone I admired and respected a lot. It’s great to have him back at his most successful and favourite tournament, no doubt.”
Dissecting his battle with De Minaur, he added: “Sometimes I wish I had the serve and volley and nice tough of the gentleman standing right there [Federer]. That would help! But I can’t complain.
“I still have to run a lot and that’s fine. I was trying to mix it up. I didn’t feel the ball so well in the first set but I got used to the conditions and started to find my forehand.”
Djokovic had been impressive up to this stage of the tournament but there were worrying signs in the De Minaur match which will instil confidence in his main title rivals, Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner. With the dust yet to settle, Djokovic didn’t quite know what to make of it all.
“I’m still trying to process the whole match,” he admitted. “It wasn’t a great start for me, it was for him. Very windy and swirly conditions on the court, he was just managing better. I didn’t have many solutions but I reset myself in the second.
“It was a tough game to close out the second set, that was a momentum shift where I felt back in the game. It was a lot of cat and mouse play and he’s so good at it. He’s one of the quickest players on the tour. On the grass it’s so difficult to play someone like him – he exposes all your weaknesses. Very pleased to hang tough and win this one.”
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