Novak Djokovic said it was “good to break the curse” in front of Roger Federer after recovering from a set down to beat Alex de Minaur and reach his 16th Wimbledon quarter-final on Monday.
Djokovic was lethargic and unusually tentative in the early stages of his last-16 match against the Australian 11th seed on Centre Court, but eventually found his rhythm to win 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.
Australia’s Alex De Minaur during his fourth-round match against Novak Djokovic yesterday
It keeps the seven-time champion on track for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title, which would be the crowning achievement of an astonishing career. If he wins the crown on Sunday, the 38-year-old Serb would also draw level with Federer’s record of eight men’s titles at the All England Club.
Retired Swiss great Federer watched from the Royal Box as his long-time rival was given his toughest test of the tournament so far. “It’s probably the first time he’s watching me and I’ve won the match,” said Djokovic. “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,” he added.
Sixth seed Djokovic was broken in the first game and conceded two more breaks as De Minaur ran away with the first set. The Serb committed 16 unforced errors, including four double faults in the opener.
Swiss legend Roger Federer cheers for his former rival Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon yesterday
Alcaraz survives Rublev test
Carlos Alcaraz again tested the nerves of his legions of fans on Sunday before dismissing Andrey Rublev to reach the Wimbledon quarter-finals and stay on track for a third straight title.
The Spaniard lost the first set to the Russian 14th seed under the Centre Court roof but found his feet to win 6-7 (5/7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4, roared on by a partisan crowd. “I think I played intelligent and smart today against him, tactically,” he said. “A really good match, which I’m really proud about.”
Sabalenka enters last eight
Women’s World No. 1 Sabalenka has yet to drop a set in four rounds at the All England Club as every other top six seed has fallen, but was given a tough workout by Belgian World No. 23 Elise Mertens.
The Belarusian came through 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) against her former doubles partner to set up a clash against Germany’s Laura Siegemund.
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