LONDON (Reuters) – Without a title for over six months, Novak Djokovic is now within touching distance of a record 25th Grand Slam trophy — with the all-conquering Serb saying Wimbledon always brings the best out of him.
For a champion who has become accustomed to trampling over the opposition while amassing almost 100 titles in his career, this lean spell is not something he is used to.
The 37-year-old lost in his Australian Open fortress at the start of the year, with his bid to win a record-extending 11th Melbourne Park title cut short in the semi-finals.
A knee injury then prematurely ended his French Open title defence last month.
So when he reached the All England Club final after a 6-4 7-6(2) 6-4 win over Lorenzo Musetti Friday, he was finally living up to his own lofty expectations.
Standing in his way to an eighth Wimbledon crown that will see him equal Roger Federer’s mark is Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Djokovic in last year’s title clash.
“I’m aware that Roger holds eight Wimbledons. I hold seven. History is on the line. Also, the 25th potential Grand Slam. It serves as a great motivation, but at the same time it’s also a lot of pressure and expectations,” Djokovic told reporters.
“Every time I step out on the court now, though I’m 37 and competing with 21-year-olds, I still expect myself to win most of the matches, and people expect me to win, whatever, 99% of the matches that I play.
“I always have to come out on court and perform my best to still be at the level with Carlos or Jannik (Sinner) or Sascha (Alexander Zverev) or Daniil (Medvedev).”
After winning three of the four majors last season, Djokovic has endured a disappointing run of form this year with injuries adding to his woes.
In fact for a while it looked like he would not be able to compete at this year’s Wimbledon after requiring knee surgery on a torn meniscus just five weeks ago.
Yet now he stands on the cusp of winning a 25th major and break a record that has stood for over half a century, with Margaret Court having won her 24th slam in 1973.
“This year hasn’t been that successful for me,” the Serbian added. “It’s probably the weakest results the first six months I’ve had in many years. That’s okay.
“I had to adapt and accept that and try to find a way out from the injury that I had and regroup. Wimbledon, historically, there’s been seasons where I wasn’t playing at a desired level but I would win a Wimbledon title and things would change, added Djokovic, who squeezed past Federer to win the 2019 final after saving two championship points against him.
“Wimbledon just extracts the best of me and motivates me to really always show up and perform the best I can.”
(Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar, editing by Pritha Sarkar)