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Novak Djokovic is on the verge of reaching the Wimbledon quarter-finals, but will need to return to the court Monday to complete the job against 17th seed Hubert Hurkacz.
Djokovic has been unable the crack the service game of Hurkacz, who has still not lost serve in the tournament (58 service games). However, the second seed rallied from down a late mini-break in each of the two tie-breaks, saving three set points in the first set for a 7-6(6), 7-6(6) lead.
Tournament referee Gerry Armstrong suspended play after the end of the second set, at 10:35 p.m. local time, given it was very unlikely the match would be played to a conclusion before the 11 p.m. curfew.
[Suspense builds up…]@DjokerNole and @HubertHurkacz will come back tomorrow 💪Wimbledon?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>@Wimbledon | Wimbledon?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw”>#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/MxAHr3s4kr
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 9, 2023
Hurkacz delivered a jaw-dropping display with his first serve throughout the first two sets, hitting 23 aces and winning 81 per cent of his first-serve points. Every time he was in any trouble, the 2021 Nitto ATP Finals competitor delivered a booming serve of more than 130mph.
However, Hurkacz struggled on return, winning just 18 per cent of his receiving points, which kept him from capitalising on his impressive serving. Djokovic’s first serve was not as visually impressive, but he won 88 per cent of those points.
Djokovic held onto his two service points from 3/6 in the first-set tie-break to save two set points and put pressure on his opponent. That paid dividends.
The 26-year-old Hurkacz crushed a 130mph first serve into the box on his third opportunity, but missed his placement too far from the T, allowing Djokovic to block it back. Hurkacz then rolled a forehand into the net to let slip his opportunity. The 17th seed made groundstroke errors in three consecutive points to lose the set.
Hurkacz did well to continue holding onto his serve, despite Djokovic increasingly earning opportunities. At 3-4 0/40 in the second set, the Pole dug out of trouble with three consecutive serves of at least 134 mph. The ATP Tour’s clear 2023 leader in aces according to Infosys ATP Stats, Hurkacz delivered under service pressure and saved all five break points in the first two sets. He even hit a backhand drop volley with so much backspin, Djokovic crashed into the net.
Novak Djokovic” style=”width: 100%;” />Photo: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images
But Djokovic once again found a way to claim the tie-break despite trailing by a late mini-break. Hurkacz made a forehand unforced error to fall behind by two sets and is now one set from trailing the seven-time Wimbledon champion 0-6 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.
Djokovic is now 20-4 in tie-breaks this season and has won 14 in a row at the majors, dating back to when he lost a tie-break to Enzo Couacaud in the second round of the Australian Open. If the 36-year-old advances, he will reach his 14th Wimbledon quarter-final, tying Jimmy Connors for second most men’s singles quarter-finals in tournament history behind only Roger Federer (18).
The winner between Djokovic and Hurkacz will play seventh seed Andrey Rublev, who defeated Alexander Bublik in five sets earlier in the day.
Did You Know?
This is the first time Djokovic has won the first two sets in tie-breaks at Wimbledon since the 2007 quarter-finals, in which he defeated Marcos Baghdatis 7-6(4), 7-6(9), 6-7(3), 4-6, 7-5.
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