By Richard Pagliaro | Wednesday, July 10, 2019
Reigning champion Novak Djokovic rampaged through 15 of the final 17 games destroying David Goffin, 6-4, 6-0, 6-2, to charge into his ninth Wimbledon semifinal.
Photo credit: Rob Newell/CameraSport
The thrill of the chase has helped fuel world No. 1 Novak Djokovic to historic heights.
Today, a devastating Djokovic displayed the dominance of a front-runner making a major statement.
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The reigning Wimbledon champion rampaged through 10 consecutive games destroying David Goffin, 6-4, 6-0, 6-2, to surge into the Wimbledon semifinals.
It is Djokovic's ninth Wimbledon semifinal equaling Boris Becker, Arthur Gore and Herbert Lawford for third place on the all-time list for most semifinal appearances at SW19 behind 11-time semifinalist Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer. Eight-time champion Federer followed Djokovic on Centre Court facing Kei Nishikori for his 13th Wimbledon semifinal.
"I've been playing best tennis in this tournament in the last two rounds, fourth round and today," Djokovic said. "Especially today second set and third set against Goffin, who was in form, I felt like I managed to dismantle his game and find always the right shots. Very pleased with the performance.
"This match could have gone different way. I was break down. He was the better player for most of the first set. But I managed to turn things around. Yeah, I feel very good on the court, confident, going for the shots, trying to come to the net, as well, be more aggressive, use the short balls."
This seventh meeting between the pair saw Goffin score the first break before a ruthless Djokovic rolled through 15 of the final 17 games dismantling one of the game's pure ball strikers with ease and efficiency. Djokovic converted seven of 10 break points completely overwhelming the world No. 23. Goffin served just 45 percent, a recipe for disaster against the man ex-coach Andre Agassi calls the greatest returner the game has seen.
"It was I think turning point winning first set," Djokovic said. "It was a huge relief for me mentally. I started relaxing, going through the ball a bit more.
"David plays very, very clean, has a very clean game. If you manage to get into your rhythm, then it feels nice. It feels comfortable being on the court. But, again, he was in form. He was playing well. I just managed to really find holes in his game and attack him. I've played as good as I've played entire tournament."
It was Djokovic's 31st victory in his last 32 Grand Slam matches and sent a menacing message to the rest of the field.
The 15-time Grand Slam champion is still the man to beat.
Djokovic will play a familiar nemesis, Roberto Bautista Agut, for a spot in Sunday's final.
The 23rd-seeded Spaniard stopped Argentinean Guido Pella, 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 to advance to his first career Grand Slam semifinal in his 27th major appearance. Djokovic has won seven of 10 meetings with Bautista Agut, but the 31-year-old Spaniard has won their last two meetings in the Doha semifinals and the Miami round of 16 in March.
"I lost to Bautista Agut the last couple of times we played, actually," Djokovic said. "He has a really solid game, doesn't make mistakes. He plays very, very flat, very consistent, very focused player. He doesn't have too many setbacks so you've got to win the match against him."
Four-time Wimbledon champion Djokovic credits hunting 20-time Grand Slam king Federer and 18-time major champion Rafael Nadal for fostering his constant quest to improve his game.
"I've said this millions of times before, that I am the player that I am today because of these guys, mostly because of the rivalries I have with two of them," Djokovic told the media at Wimbledon. "I think it can only bring positive message and value to our sport, the fact that we're still playing, the fact we're still making history of the game. It does transcend, I feel like, and hopefully does."
Staring down a one break, 3-4 deficit today, Djokovic tuned into transcendent tennis elevating his game to a lofty level the Belgian could not match.
Tossing his white baseball cap aside, Djokovic rallied from a love-30 hole and broke right back blocking an angled forehand volley with a knee on the turf to level.
Through the first half of the set, Goffin was the aggressor who had the momentum. Djokovic flipped the switch streaming through his second straight break to snatch the opening set when the Belgian's backhand down the line strayed wide. Djokovic reeled off 13 of the final 16 points in the opening set.
The pair exchanged an electric double tweener in the opening game of the second set, but that was really the only second-set highlight for Goffin, who was not gaining traction in baseline rallies.
The top seed sustained his roll winning a rapid-fire net exchange with a stretch forehand volley for his third consecutive break and a 2-0 second-set lead. A shanked forehand from Goffin gave Djokovic a love break and his seventh straight game for a one-set, 4-0 lead.
Djokovic displaced his opponent behind the baseline, cruised forehand and thumped a smash to complete the second-set bagel.
A dispirited Goffin was already out of answers by the time he finally held in the second game of the third set to stall his 10-game slide, eliciting a sympathetic cheer from the crowd.
"It was tough," Goffin said. "Even if I had game points, he was serving better, like I said. Every point is tough. You have to play the perfect point to win it against him.
"Then he's returning in your feet all the time. You know how the grass is, just in front of the line, it's so tough, it's really fast. He put you under pressure all the time. Even if you play well, it's not enough because he continue, continue, to play deep, deep, close from the line, left, right. Amazing backhand down the line, as well. He was everywhere."
Fierce focus and accurate strikes on the run were assets for Djokovic, who dug drives out of the corner, ran down the majority of the Belgian's drop-shot attempts and won 19 of 27 trips to net.
The Big 4 of Djokovic, Federer, Nadal and Andy Murray have combined to collect 16 consecutive Wimbledon crowns and 52 of the last 57 Grand Slam championships.
The 32-year-old Djokovic, who dropped his lone set of the tournament to Hubert Hurkacz in round three, is peaking at the perfect time just as he did in Melbourne in January when he dropped just 14 games total in straight-sets wins over Kei Nishikori in the quarterfinals, Lucas Pouille in the semifinals and Nadal in the final roaring to his 15th Grand Slam title at the Australian Open.
"I had a tough match in the third round," Djokovic said. "Other than that, I won in straight sets and played really well throughout the tournament.
"I think my two best matches were fourth round and quarterfinals today exactly what I wanted and needed and hopefully I can go in the right direction in semis as well."