WIMBLEDON, July 14: This was the moment. If Novak Djokovic was going to be stopped in the Wimbledon semi-finals, if his much younger and harder-hitting opponent, Jannik Sinner, was going to turn things around on Friday, the monumental comeback required would need to start immediately.
Djokovic knew it. Sinner knew it. The 15,000 or so Centre Court spectators knew it.
After taking the first two sets, Djokovic trailed 5-4 in the third, and a flubbed forehand made the game score 15-40 as he served. Two chances for Sinner to finally break. Two chances for him to actually take a set. Djokovic hit a fault, which drew some sounds of approval from the stands. Djokovic sarcastically used his racket and the ball to applaud the noise-makers, then flashed a thumbs up.
He can back up any such bravado. Djokovic simply does not lose at the All England Club lately. Or at any Grand Slam tournament, for that matter. So he calmly collected the next four points to claim that game, looked toward the crowd and mockingly pretended to wipe away a tear. Twenty minutes later, the match was over, and the 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory over Sinner allowed Djokovic to close in on a record-tying eighth title at Wimbledon and fifth in a row.
Djokovic repeatedly served himself out of potential trouble, saving all six break points he faced, to reach his ninth final at the All England Club.
It’s also his 35th final at all Grand Slam tournaments, more than any man or woman in tennis history.
As great as he is as a returner, as superb as his defence is — over and over, he would sprint and lean and stretch to reach a ball that extended a point until Sinner made a mistake — Djokovic possesses a serve that might be the part of his game he’s improved the most over his career.
That showed on Friday, and it’s showed throughout this fortnight: In his half-dozen matches during the tournament, Djokovic has won 111 of his 114 service games and saved 20 of 23 break points.
Sinner is the one who hit serves at up to 132 mph and pounded one fault that clanged against the speed readout board in a corner of the arena with such force it sounded as if he might have broken the thing. Of more concern to Sinner: It was followed by another fault in a game he would get broken to trail 2-1 in the second set.
In truth, talented as Sinner is, he didn’t really generate any more frustration for Djokovic than chair umpire Richard Haigh did.
In one game in which Djokovic would face — and erase — a break point, he argued to no avail after forfeiting a point because Haigh called him for hindrance for letting out a lengthy yell while the ball was still in play. Moments later, Haigh issued Djokovic a warning for letting the serve-clock expire.
But Djokovic set all of that aside as he continued his pursuit of a 24th major singles championship overall to set the mark for the most in the Open era, which began in 1968.
Roger Federer is the only man to have won eight singles trophies at Wimbledon.
Martina Navratilova won the women’s championship nine times. (AP)
