Djokovic Drops A Set At Wimbledon, Anderson Fizzles; Federer, Nadal On Centre Sat.
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Novak Djokovic joined rivals Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer in also dropping a set at Wimbledon. The defending champion still managed to get through 22-year-old Hubert Hurkacz 7-5, 6-7(5), 6-1, 6-4.
Hurkacz, who lost to Djokovic at the French, began to find his form late in the second, diving and giving it his all out there on Court 1, and it paid off. But Djokovic quickly broke in the third and cruised to his 10th straight Wimbledon match win.
“Credit to Hurkacz for playing well. He pushed me. He served well. He attacked the ball mid-court. He gave it all and played a great quality match,” Djokovic said. “I should have capitalized on my opportunities also in the second set. I wasn’t really on top of his second serve. I was a bit hesitant in the play, which wasn’t the case in the first two matches.
“But I think third set was great. Fourth set, as well, very solid. I’m really pleased with the way I finished the match.”
Djokovic will now meet 21-year-old Ugo Humbert who beat 18-year-old Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 in a mild upset. Playing his first Wimbledon like his opponent, Umbert dominated the Canadian’s second serve and overcame a 5-2 second set hole.
“Pressure got to me, and… it got to a point where it was a bit embarrassing,” Auger-Aliassime said. “It was just tough. I just wasn’t finding ways. I think he just did what he had to do. It was solid.”
One Canadian did get through. Former finalist Milos Raonic rode his powerful serve to squash the hopes of American big man Reilly Opelka 7-6(1), 6-2, 6-1.
Raonic will now get Guido Pella who scored the stunner of the day beating up 2018 finalist and 4th-seeded Kevin Anderson 6-4, 6-3, 7-6(4) to make his first Slam fourth round.
“Without a doubt playing a lot of matches and being match tough, having a lot of confidence in that process, is very valuable,” Anderson said. “I haven’t had that right now.
“I’m sure that fact is in somewhere along the line. I thought today, even though I haven’t played , he was really a tough opponent. Obviously a tough grass season, but definitely some positives being back onto the match court, being able to play two tournaments, getting in a few more matches. Hopefully I’ll be able to keep progressing, find more momentum heading into the hard-court swing in the States.”
Benoit Paire advanced over Jiri Vesely and he’ll meet Roberto Bautista Agut who was a winner over Karen Khachanov.
Fernando Verdasco is back in Wimbledon week 2 in six years after rolling past the Italian Thomas Fabbiano. He’ll meet David Goffin who recovered from 4-1 down in the fifth to hand to keep Daniil Medvedev winless in five set matches.
“It was an amazing feeling,” said Goffin. “But I felt that I was a little bit the better player during the whole match. If you see all the rallies and how I felt during the match, I was feeling good and during the rallies I was a little bit more aggressive.
“But you never know with a player like Daniil, who sometimes is aggressive in just a few points, and then he serves, and then few aces, could be 4-1 like in the fifth. But I felt like I had the game and the shots to come back. Physically I was feeling great, as well.”
On tap Saturday, Roger Federer and Rafael return to face French opposition. Federer meets Australian Open semifinalist Lucas Pouille while Nadal gets rival Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.
Kei Nishikori also meets American Steve Johnson and Matteo Berrettini battles Diego Schwartzman in a all-seeded affair.
SATURDAY WIMBLEDON SCHEDULE
CENTRE COURT – SHOW COURT – 13:00 START
Ashleigh Barty (AUS) [1] vs Harriet Dart (GBR)
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (FRA) vs Rafael Nadal (ESP) [3]
Lucas Pouille (FRA) [27] vs Roger Federer (SUI) [2]
No.1 COURT – SHOW COURT – 13:00 START
Serena Williams (USA) [11] vs Julia Goerges (GER) [18]
Sloane Stephens (USA) [9] vs Johanna Konta (GBR) [19]
Joao Sousa (POR) vs Daniel Evans (GBR)
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