As Novak Djokovic grumbled and growled around Centre Court while leading the Wimbledon qualifier Roman Safiullin by two sets, the 39-year-old came very close to breaking point. Djokovic had overcome a slow start to establish what looked to be a dominant position, as he closed in on a ninth consecutive quarter-final at the All England Club. Safiullin’s epic run from qualifying – including back-to-back wins in fifth-set tiebreaks – appeared to be reaching the end of its road.
Djokovic, though, went down a break at the start of the third set, as a rocket of a forehand from Safiullin was followed by Djokovic losing his balance on the baseline and slumping a shot into the net. For a split second, with steam coming out of his ears, Djokovic considered smashing a ball into the back fence. He caught himself at the final moment, but the German umpire Timo Janzen still stepped in to give Djokovic a warning for audible obscenity. Then, a few games later, Djokovic did burst, whacking a ball away in frustration.
Despite making Wimbledon history with his 106th victory at the Championships, passing Roger Federer for the all-time men’s singles record, Djokovic was in no mood to celebrate as he booked a quarter-final with third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime on Tuesday. “Of course, I’m relieved and happy to win it, but I haven’t enjoyed it,” he said. The source of his frustration against Safiullin appeared to be the moments where his game looked unrecognisable, when he offered the qualifier hope through either uncharacteristic errors or lapses, when his timing abandoned him.
Earlier in the week, Djokovic agreed with the assessment that his second-round demolition of Stefanos Tsitsipas was “vintage”. He described the level he produced in peaking for the fourth-set tiebreak against Arthur Rinderknech in the third round as “flawless”. And while Djokovic scrapped and did what he needed to do to outlast Safiullin, a former Wimbledon quarter-finalist ranked 132nd in the world after missing the end of last season due to injury, his level evidently left him downbeat. He also apologised for his “outbursts and meltdowns” on Centre Court.
All of which could come as some alarm to Djokovic as he attempts to win a record 25th grand slam title next Sunday. Djokovic finds himself just three wins away from his holy grail, but at the point where his tournament becomes serious with no guarantees over his form. By his own admission, what level Djokovic produces when he faces Auger-Aliassime second on Centre Court is anyone’s guess. After his four-set victory over the 26th seed Rinderknech this week, Djokovic admitted that at his age and at this stage of his career “every day brings something new and unpredictable for me”.
The question now is whether Djokovic is able to raise his level. Last season, when Djokovic reached all four semi-finals at the grand slams, the quarter-finals were the scene of his best victories, falling in the sweet spot where he was fresh enough to compete against younger opponents but late enough in the tournament that he knew he needed to step it up. He defeated Carlos Alcaraz at the Australian Open, Alexander Zverev at the French Open, Flavio Cobolli at Wimbledon and Taylor Fritz at the US Open, only to run into Jannik Sinner or Alcaraz in the semi-finals.
At Wimbledon, there’s no Alcaraz to worry about, but Djokovic remains on a collision course with Sinner for a repeat of last year’s semi-finals. Djokovic, though, won their most recent meeting. After Lorenzo Musetti retired while leading their Australian Open quarter-final this season Djokovic then produced his best performance in years to defeat Sinner in the semi-finals. At the next grand slam, Djokovic ran into the inspired Joao Fonseca, but arrived at Wimbledon giving the impression that, on grass, this was always going to be his best opportunity to win a record grand slam title.
The pieces haven’t quite fallen into place, though. While Djokovic breezed past Tsitsipas, saving himself important energy for the fortnight ahead, he has been taken to four sets in his last two matches. Arriving in the quarter-finals, he finds himself up against the highest possible seed in Auger-Aliassime, who is playing at a career-high ranking. Curiously, Djokovic and the 25-year-old Auger-Aliassime have only played twice before. The Canadian has the capacity to make their quarter-final long and awkward. He has dropped serve just once these Championships, saving 10 of 11 break points faced, and that’s after playing for four hours and 26 minutes against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the fourth round.
Even if Djokovic beats Auger-Aliassime, defending champion Sinner is likely to await in the smei-finals, a year on from the 6-3 6-3 6-4 demolition handed out by the world No 1 on Centre Court. As the 39-year-old admitted, it has required “a bit of luck and a bit of skill” to get through the first week of Wimbledon, but Djokovic has also shown an ability to suddenly switch into focus when he needs to: standing up to serve back-to-back aces during his fourth-set tiebreak against Rinderknech stands as the most prominent example. “Survive to thrive, that’s how I feel,” Djokovic said when summing up his week, before adding: “Hopefully the thriving part is coming.”
