Novak Djokovic celebrates
Veteran tennis player Novak Djokovic progressed to the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the 13th time after beating Tim van Rijthoven, a wild-card entry.
In the round of 16, 25-year-old Dutchman smacked a 133 mph ace past Djokovic and tied their fourth-round match at a set apiece. All of nine minutes later, the time it took Djokovic to grab 12 of the next 15 points, and the next three games, both plausibility, and possibility took a hike.
Soon enough, the third set was his, and not much later, so was the fourth, and then he registered his 83rd Wimbledon match win. Djokovic emerged victorious by 6-2, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2. This was a 25th consecutive grass-court victory at the All England Club for the top-seeded player.
Watch the Highlights: Djokovic vs van Rijthoven match Highlights
“Novak did his Novak thing,” van Rijthoven said, “and played very, very well. He had all the answers.”
Beforehand, van Rijthoven had said: “I'll go into that match thinking I can win.” Might have still had that sense Sunday evening. If only briefly.
The match did not begin until 8 PM due to the ceremony which was held to honor the 100 years of Centre Court.
“Whew. I am lucky,” Djokovic said after closing the deal with 20 minutes to spare. "It's never really pleasant if you can't finish the match on the same day. Glad I did," he added.
Talking about the game and his opponent's pace Djokovic said,
“He was on a streak on this surface, and I knew that it wasn't going to be easy. With that serve and a lot of talent, great touch, powerful forehand, he can do a lot of damage,” Djokovic said.
“It took me a little bit of time to get used to his pace.”
Djokovic's pursuit of a fourth consecutive, and seventh overall, title at Wimbledon and 21st major championship, will continue Tuesday against No. 10 seed Jannik Sinner of Italy.
Sinner reached his first quarterfinal at the All England Club by eliminating No. 5 Carlos Alcaraz 6-1, 6-4, 6-7 (8), 6-3 earlier.
The rest of the fourth round is Monday, and the only men left in the field who ever have participated in a Grand Slam final are Djokovic and his arch-rival Rafael Nadal. They are also the only men still around ranked in the top 10.
(Inputs from PTI)
