Novak Djokovic’s quest for a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title came to an end at Wimbledon, as the Serbian legend was ousted in straight sets by Italy’s Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. With the Italian now set to face Carlos Alcaraz in Sunday’s final, Djokovic weighed in on who he believes has the edge at the All England Club.
Sinner dominated the semifinal clash, overpowering Djokovic 6–3, 6–3, 6–4. The 23-year-old will now have a shot at redemption in a rematch of the Roland Garros final, where he had three championship points against Alcaraz but ultimately fell short as the Spaniard claimed his fifth career Grand Slam title.
When asked in his post-match press conference who he saw as the favorite for the Wimbledon final, Djokovic leaned slightly toward Alcaraz, citing the Spaniard’s experience and confidence.
“I think I will give a slight edge to Carlos as a favorite because of the two titles he’s won here and the way he’s playing and the confidence he has right now,” said Djokovic. “But it’s just a slight advantage because Jannik is hitting the ball extremely well. I think it’s going to be, again, a very close matchup like we had in Paris”.
Djokovic details his physical struggles
The 38-year-old admitted that he wasn’t physically at his best against Sinner. After tweaking something near the end of his quarterfinal win over Flavio Cobolli, Djokovic said he simply couldn’t move the way he needed to in order to compete at the highest level.
“I do feel disappointed that I just wasn’t able to move as well as I thought or hoped that I would. It’s just age, the wear and tear of the body. As much as I’m taking care of it, the reality hits me right now, last year and a half, like never before, to be honest,” Djokovic admitted. “It’s tough for me to accept that because I feel like when I’m fresh, when I’m fit, I can still play really good tennis. I’ve proven that this year”.
While Djokovic continues to reach the latter stages of Grand Slam tournaments—semifinals or better in all three Majors so far this year—he acknowledged that five-set matches against the sport’s rising stars are becoming increasingly difficult.
“I guess playing best-of-five, particularly this year, has been a real struggle for me physically. The longer the tournament goes, the worse the condition gets,” he continued. “I reach the final stages, I reach the semis of every Slam this year, but I have to play Sinner or Alcaraz. These guys are fit, young, sharp. I feel like I’m going into the match with tank half empty. It’s just not possible to win a match like that”.