By Richard Pagliaro | Monday, June 28, 2021
Novak Djokovic rose from first-set falls roaring back for a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 win over Jack Draper to score his 15th straight Wimbledon win.
Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty
Fresh turf can be treacherous even for experienced champions.
Novak Djokovic calls grass the game's most dangerous surface.
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After a couple of first-set falls, Djokovic found himself slipping and sliding around the lawn down a set to British wild card Jack Draper beneath the closed Centre Court roof.
Dancing out of the danger zone, Djokovic delivered dynamic response roaring back for a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 triumph to reach his 16th consecutive second round at The Championships.
Launching his Wimbledon title defense taming trouble, Djokovic scored his 15th straight Wimbledon win and 15th consecutive major match victory.
It's the first step on what the 34-year-old Serbian hopes will be a momentous march. Continuing his quest for the Golden Slam, the Australian Open and French Open champion is playing for his 20th Grand Slam title to match the men's major mark shared by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
Once Djokovic found his footing, the serve set the tone for today's comeback. Djokovic served 78 percent, smacked 25 aces against one double fault and breezed through the third set on the strength of four love holds winning all 16 service points in the set. Djokovic unleashed a four-ace game and capped a declarative comeback cracking his 25th ace.
"I think I probably had one of the best serving performances that I can recall on any surface," Djokovic said. "I think I matched, someone told me, the record I had whether it was earlier this year or last year in Australia, also 25 aces in four sets.
"Yeah, I could not be more pleased with the rhythm of my serve. On grass, the quickest surface in our sport, it helps a lot getting a lot of free points on that first serve."
It all added up to a secure two-hour landing after a couple of opening-set crashes.
"To be honest I don't recall [falling] this many times on the court," Djokovic said afterward. "And slippery whether it's because te roof was closed or quite rainy the last few days I don't know.
"But obviously a huge honor for me to walk onto this court. For me, the most special court. I always dream of playing Wimbledon, winning Wimbledon one day when I was a kid growing up in Serbia. So I try not to take anything for granted."
The five-time Wimbledon champion will face big-serving Kevin Anderson in a round two rematch of the 2018 Wimbledon final, which Djokovic won in straight sets.
"Still finding my footing, I would say, on the grass that was quite slippery, quite moist," Djokovic said. "It was probably because of the roof. But anyway, was a very good performance. I'm pleased with the second, third and fourth set, the way I played from the back of the court. I started returning better, as well, midway second set. All in all, I'm satisfied."
An enthusiastic standing ovation from fans greeted both players as they stepped out for the first Centre Court singles match played beneath the closed roof since Djokovic defeated Nadal 10-8 in the fifth set of the epic 2018 semifinals.
Earning break point in Draper's opening service game, Djokovic slipped and tumbled on the grass court as Draper poked a shot into the open court to save break point.
That fall seemed to shake Djokovic, who failed to break.
The top seed gifted the opening break with a double fault and a nervy forehand into net to end a sloppy third game. Draper backed up the break for 3-1.
The reigning champion gained double break point in the sixth game only to fall striking a forehand in nearly the same spot as the first slip. Draper denied both break points for 4-2.
Facing a love-40 deficit in the eighth game, Draper denied all three then saved another with an ace. The Briton was moving with more self-assurance than one of the game's premier movers. Draper slid a slice down the T, snatching the 37-minute first set in stunning fashion winning 17 of 20 first-serve points, while Djokovic was 0 for 7 on break-point chances.
The world No. 253 did not looked fazed by his Grand Slam debut. Draper, who knocked off Jannik Sinner and Alexander Bublik at Queen's Club, would find holding serve a much tougher proposition in the second set.
"He definitely deserves a round of applause," Djokovic said of Draper. "He's a youngster. I haven't seen him play too much prior to Queen's tournament that he played pretty well and he won a couple of matches against high-ranked players.
"Walking onto Wimbledon Centre Court for him for the first time I think he has done extremely well. He carried himself very maturely on the court, he backed himself, he behaved well, he believed he could come back he deserves credit for that and I wish him all the best for the rest of his career."
The Roland Garros champion's response was swift and severe to the deficit.
Putting his foot down, Djokovic broke on a double fault and streak through seven straight points posting a 3-0 second-set lead.
A dipping cross-court pass helped the top seed break again as he seized a 5-1 lead just 23 minutes into the second set. Djokovic thumped a 102 mph second serve ace down the T to close the second set. In a strong serving performance, Djokovic permitted just three points on serve in the set.
After a fruitless first set when he failed to break, Djokovic dug in and made the left-hander work for nearly every point on serve. Delving into the doubles alley to flick a backhand return, Djokovic improvised a leaping lob completely bamboozling Draper, who whiffed on a smash, caught up to the ball then sailed a forehand as Djokovic broke for a 2-1 third-set advantage.
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Dialed in on serve, Djokovic snapped his eighth ace of the set and 18th of the match to cap a fourth consecutive love hold in a flawless serving set that saw him win all 16 points played on serve for a two-sets to one lead.
Pete Sampras, who was Djokovic's childhood tennis hero, is the last man to drop the first set of the tournament and go on to take the title.
Djokovic improved to 28-3 on the season and departed Centre Court with a simple game-plan to sustain his streak through what may well be a historic fortnight.
"Every time I step on to this court you feel the history, you feel the tradition and I'll just take it one day at a time," Djokovic said. "Obviously completely different from clay. I had an amazing Roland Garros and I'm very pleased with that. Hopefully, I'm gonna work on my movement and maybe slide a bit less on grass.
"It seems to be not working maybe as well on this surface."