NOVAK: YOU CAN COUNT ME OUT
Djokovic insists he’s not a contender after Cilic loss
Novak Djokovic ended his week with a gloomy countenance and discounting his chances of winning Wimbledon.
Yet in going down to a three-set defeat in the Fever-Tree championships final he found himself in good company, as over in Germany Roger Federer also suffered a setback to his preparations for the big fortnight.
Both of them lost to croats, Djokovic falling 5-7, 7-6, 6-3 to Marin cilic at Queen’s club, while in Halle the great Swiss was beaten by 21- year- old Borna coric, a less formidable grasscourt player than his compatriot.
Despite that it was Djokovic who was less happy as he assessed his prospects for SW19: ‘i wouldn’t say i’m a contender for a trophy or anything like that. i have to keep my expectations very low, considering my results in the last 12 months.’
it is true that, after missing the second half of last season, these have been well below his usual standards. He remains without a title since winning at Eastbourne nearly a year ago, but he is on an upward trajectory from when it seemed he could barely be bothered to try in March.
Federer remains chirpy and it is distinctly premature to think that his campaign to win another Wimbledon at the age of 36 has been blown off course by a 7-6, 3-6, 6-2 defeat at the hands of the feisty coric.
‘i’m definitely going to leave with my head high, thinking it’s been a good run in Stuttgart and Halle,’ he said.
While he has looked less than impregnable, in his two grasscourt tournaments he has been obliged to play nine matches in 12 days. To win Wimbledon he needs to win seven in 14 days, albeit over best- of-five sets, but it is a rhythm he knows so well and should be confident of handling.
Neither of them will wish to be drawn near cilic, runner-up from last year and now twice a Queen’s champion. He last won here in 2012, the forgotten beneficiary of the famous incident when David Nalbandian was disqualified for kicking out at a linesman.
With his rangy movement, flat ground strokes and potent serve he is a very awkward opponent, although Djokovic knew he could still have won, hence his downbeat disposition. Having saved six break points to win the first set, there was not a great deal he could do about his one match point at 5-4 in the second, which was saved with a searing service winner. More frustrating was having a lead of 4-1 in the tiebreak, after which he lost six straight points, one of them a double fault at 4-3. aside from appearing to be less physically robust these days, this is a major difference between now and peak Djokovic, the lack of clarity on the big points. PETRa kviTova established herself as arguably the favourite for Wimbledon when she defeated Magdalena Rybarikova 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 to retain the Nature valley classic title in Birmingham. it was her fifth singles title of 2018.