Despite starting slowly against the formidable Alexei Popyrin in his third-round match, 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic dragged the Australian to all parts of the court in the third set to win 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (3). Djokovic produced his best tennis to date since undergoing knee surgery a month ago.
Playing on Wimbledon’s Center Court for the first time, Popyrin started strong and put on a strong fight in a thrilling fourth set, but in the end, he was unable to overcome the seven-time winner, with untimely lapses in focus early in the second and third sets being crucial.
Popyrin put in a heroic effort, and the Serbian acknowledged that he performed at his best level of the year during the fourth tie-break.
Djokovic praised Popyrin after the match and said: “I didn’t expect anything less than what we experienced on the court today from Alexei. With that serve and powerful forehand, he’s dangerous on any surface. I knew he was in form and he was going to come out believing he could win. He was the better player in the first set. I think I played a good second and third and the fourth was anybody’s game.”
Djokovic beats Alexei Popyrin 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6
The last time Novak lost in the 3rd round of Wimbledon was in 2016.
Eight years have passed.
But one legend remains.
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) July 6, 2024
Djokovic in Wimbledon, ranking, and results in 2024
WWLWWWWWWW Ranked world no.2, the Serbian owns a 21-6 win-loss record in 2024. Djokovic is competing in Wimbledon where he ousted the world no.123 Vit Kopriva 6-1 6-2 6-2, the world no.277 Jacob Fearnley 6-3 6-4 5-7 7-5 and the world no.47 Alexei Popyrin 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3).
Novak Djokovic will square off with the world no.15 Holger Rune in the 4th round. Their current record is 3-2 for Djokovic.
The Serbian won 98 titles in his career: 52 on hard courts, 19 on clay courts, 19 on indoor courts and 8 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Djokovic will compete next in Montreal (National Bank Open). He will start to play the tournament from the main draw that will commence on the 5th of August.
Alexei Popyrin in 2024
Currently the world no.47, the Australian played his last match on the 6th of July when he capitulated to world no.2 Novak Djokovic 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3) in the 3rd round in Wimbledon (draw).
Until now, during this year Alexei owns an overall 14-12 match record. Alexei Popyrin’s most significant result of the year was reaching the semifinal in Doha.
Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin faced off 3 times. Their current head to head is 3-0 for Djokovic. The last time they competed against each other, Novak Djokovic won 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6(3) in the 3rd round in London (Wimbledon) on the 6th of July 2024.
Novak Djokovic and Alexei Popyrin |
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