Novak Djokovic’s second-round win over Stefanos Tsitsipas at Wimbledon was so emphatic that he had time to play a baby ball between sets during his match on center court.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion beat Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 in just an hour and 38 minutes in a performance described as “vintage” Djokovic.
“I like the terminology ‘vintage,’” said the seven-time Wimbledon winner.
“It feels good, brings back better days.”
In his comments, 2017 semi-finalist Sam Querrey said Djokovic was indeed aiming to equal Roger Federer’s men’s record of eight titles at SW19.
“This is the best he’s played since the Australian Open. It was an almost flawless performance,” Querrey said.
“If he can maintain this level for five more matches, there is no reason to think he doesn’t have a good chance of the title.”
While Djokovic’s form was impressive in his early wins over Yibing Wu and two-time major finalist Tsitsipas, the Serb spent a lot of time between rallies stretching his 39-year-old body.
And while his Greek opponent took his usual break between the second and third sets, Djokovic felt relaxed enough to have some fun with the ball.
He was trying to cut some excess material off his shoulder when he asked for help.
When she tried to throw a punch, Djokovic flinched as if she had caught him by the skin, causing her to jump.
He quickly apologized as the crowd laughed and she put her hand over her heart, and he made sure to apologize immediately after the match while she laughed on the court.
“Things like this happen when you have two couples in love,” he said.
There didn’t seem to be any bad feelings. (Attached: Stan)
“Stefanos went to change clothes, so I had some free time.
“I’m sorry if I scared her. It probably wasn’t such a good joke. It made me relax a little.”
Djokovic will next face 25th seed Arthur Rinderknek of France.
Earlier, top seed Jannik Sinner faced Portugal’s Nuno Borges and after the Italian’s dangers in his five-set win over Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in the opening match, the 24-year-old kept his balance to advance to the third round.
Borges, world number 48, had the break point in the second set but Sinner was relatively quiet as he raised his game in the crunch moments to claim a 7-6 (7/4), 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 victory.
“The second match on grass, I wasn’t looking for perfection,” Sinner said.
“I tried to improve. Sometimes I thought I was doing it. Now let’s see how it goes.”
Eighth seed Daniil Medvedev won in four sets over Spaniard Daniel Merida; French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli, seeded ninth, beat Mariano Navone; and Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca was surrounded by a yellow-clad fan club as he streaked past Jesper de Jong.
American qualifier Michael Zheng followed up his first win over British number one Cameron Norrie with a level win over Colombian Nicolas Mejia.
He was joined in the third round by American Tommy Paul for his second straight win, this time over Kwon Soon Woo.
ABC/Reuters