DJOK RIGHT ON COURSE

PERHAPS Novak Djokovic was in a hurry to get back to his missus.

Or maybe this was the Serbian’s way of telling John McEnroe that his days of mouthing off at Wimbledon are long gone.

But after Centre Court’s one-time Super Brat suggested Djokovic’s 12-month decline was down to problems in the marital home, the men’s No. 2 seed was a man on a mission as he moved into the last 16 with a 132-minute blitz of Ernests Gulbis.

Djokovic looked a little unsettled when big-serving Gulbis claimed an early break to lead 4-2 in the first set.

But he hit back to demoralise the Latvian by winning nine successive games on his way to a 6-4 6-1 7-6 (7-2) victory.

Djokovic will play ball-boy barger Adrian Mannarino in the fourth round after the Frenchman’s remarkable championship continued with a five-set win over Gael Monfils.

The pair met in the second round last year – with the Serb prevailing in straight sets.

Djokovic said: “I am delighted with my performance. I raised the level of my tennis compared to the first two matches.

“This was definitely the most focused I have been on court.

“Gulbis has got a huge serve – averaging 136mph – and he started off very well, but then I won a lot of games in a row.

“I am very pleased with how I felt out there, and I am also glad that the crowd enjoyed it.”