THISDAY

Djokovic Wins Fourth Wimbledon Tittle

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Novak Djokovic earned his first Grand Slam title in more than two years by beating Kevin Anderson to win his fourth Wimbledon championsh­ip.

Djokovic, seeded 12th, won 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-3) to claim a 13th Slam - his first major since the 2016 French Open.

The Serb, 31, quickly took control to win the opening set in 29 minutes, breaking twice more in the second set.

Djokovic saw off five set points in an even third set before dominating the tie-break to seal victory. He dropped to his haunches just inside the baseline as Centre Court rose to acclaim the champion, hugging South African Anderson at the net before skipping over towards his box and celebratin­g wildly in front of his coaching team and wife Jelena.

“I had many moments of doubt, I didn’t know if could come back to this level to compete,” said Djokovic, who also won the Wimbledon title in 2011, 2014 and 2015.

“There is no better place to make a comeback, it’s a sacred place for the world of tennis, it’s very special.”

He is now in outright fourth place on the all-time list of Grand Slam men’s singles titles, moving clear of Roy Emerson and closing the gap on Roger Federer (20), Rafael Nadal (17) and Pete Sampras (14).

The former world number one will move back into the top 10 when the latest rankings are released today.

Djokovic dominated the men’s game earlier this decade, holding the number one ranking for 223 weeks and completing a career Grand Slam when he claimed the title at Roland Garros two years ago.

 ??  ?? France players celebratin­g with Antoine Greizeman for the penalty goal that gave the team the second goal
France players celebratin­g with Antoine Greizeman for the penalty goal that gave the team the second goal
 ??  ?? President Emmanuel Macron celebrates the opening goal by France in grand style
President Emmanuel Macron celebrates the opening goal by France in grand style
 ??  ?? World Cup winning coach, Didier Deschamps in majestic celebratio­n with his players after the match
World Cup winning coach, Didier Deschamps in majestic celebratio­n with his players after the match
 ??  ?? France supporters following the telecast in an open park celebratin­g one of the goals
France supporters following the telecast in an open park celebratin­g one of the goals
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