Djokovic sweeps aside tour rookie
WEATHER: LONG RAIN DELAY PLAYS HAVOC WITH SCHEDULE
Novak Djokovic overcame an early scare before getting his bid for a sixth Wimbledon and record-equalling 20th Grand Slam title off to a winning start yesterday, while rain brought havoc to the schedule, one year after the tournament was cancelled due to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Defending champion and world No 1 Djokovic, looking to become just the third man in history to complete a calendar Grand Slam, claimed a 4-6, 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 win over Britain’s 253rdranked Jack Draper.
However, the 34-year-old Serb struggled on the slippery Centre Court surface with the roof closed above it due to the rain.
Left-handed Draper, playing just his fifth match on the main tour, saved all seven break points in the opener to stun the top seed.
But Djokovic soon snuffed out any danger of him becoming only the third defending champion to lose in the first round, by sweeping through the remainder of the tie.
He finished with an impressive 25 aces and 47 winners as his 19-year-old opponent, who grew up just 9.5km from the All England Club, wilted.
“He’s a youngster and I hadn’t seen him play too much prior to Queen’s and he played pretty well, won matches against high-ranked players,” said Djokovic.
“Walking onto Wimbledon Centre Court for the first time, he’s done extremely well.”
It was the 34-year-old Djokovic’s first match on the court since his epic five-set win over Roger Federer in the 2019 final, the longest title match in tournament history.
His match yesterday was preceded by a standing ovation for Professor Sarah Gilbert, one of the key scientists behind the Oxford Asra-Zeneca Covid-19 vaccine, who was a special guest in the Royal Box.