Novak Djokovic v Nick Kyrgios For The 2022 Wimbledon Title, Who’s The Pick?

Well, Rafael Nadal was a no go on Friday for his impending semifinal, so it’s Nick Kyrgios (all of people) coming out to try his hand at stopping Novak Djokovic from yet another Wimbledon title.

Djokovic has won his last 27 matches at Wimbledon and three straight titles. Last year, Matteo Berrettini gave his best shot but failed. In 2019, Roger Federer came up just short and in 2018 Kevin Anderson was no match for the Serb.

So now it falls on the combustible Kyrgios. The Australian has been on a career-best tear this grass season and since we are on a big stage — arguably the very biggest of stages — I fully expect him to continue to play well and show up with his “A” game. But will that be enough?

Kyrgios won a testy tussle over Stefanos Tsitsipas then played his tricks late in the fourth to disrupt Brandon Nakashima, and in the quarterfinals cruised past an overmatched Cristian Garin.

Had Nadal been healthy, I don’t think Nick would still be around, at least not playing on Centre Court the final day of Wimbledon.

Kyrgios’s game is built around his big serve and getting into the head of the opponent, not necessarily in that order.

He has different options and routines to go to depending upon situation and opponent. Tomorrow will be different.

On the other side of the net, Djokovic has been pretty good. Maybe not his best, but good enough. He ripped Kyrgios’s buddy Thanasi Kokkinakis but dropped a set to Tim van Rijthoven, was down two to Jannik Sinner and lost the opener against Cameron Norrie.

So he’s had some slow starts. Yet, even trailing, Djokovic doesn’t panic. That said, none of the guys Djokovic has played are as dangerous a foe as Kyrgios. Djokovic knows that.

During his career, there are just a handful of a players the Serb has faced multiple times without a win and Kyrgios is one of them (Marat Safin and Jiri Vesely the others).

Kyrgios posted two wins on hardcourts over Novak back in March 2017, both in straight sets. Are they meaningful? I don’t think it matters, but it can’t hurt Kyrgios.

Playing in your first Grand Slam and facing a Djokovic, Kyrgios will take anything he can because it’s rare for any of these first-timers to beat one of these legends in a Slam final. For them, time and time again the opponent and the occasion have been too much to handle. I think Kyrgios also succumbs.

Kyrgios will have a long three days to think about it and he already admitted to having a sleepless night. Whether or not he was being honest there I don’t know, but he’s like to take the pressure off any way he can.

Often, Kyrgios is out there to have fun and play the role of entertainer. This is different. This is by far the biggest final or match he’s been a part of in 4-5 years. He can try to minimize the pressure or the significance, but it’s there and it will only mount. And there’s simply no way to prepare for it with all of Australia and their history of great champions watching.

Djokovic is used to this. And he has won. Kyrgios hasn’t.

So I have to think Djokovic comes through. He’ll want to get that first win on Nick and get that first Slam of 2021. He might not be allowed to play the US Open or even Australia, so this match carries that much more weight for him.

If Djokovic serves like he did in the last three sets against Norrie he’ll be fine. I don’t think any of Kyrgios’s antics will work on Novak but Kyrgios will likely try. And since it’s a final, my guess is the umpire will keep him on a short leash — you don’t want Nick making a mockery of the final.

Kyrgios will have to start off quick and strong. I don’t think he can drop the first set and win. The key, really, for the match is the Kyrgios serve. Assuming Djokovic is playing decent, Kyrgios will have to have one of his best serving days of his life. Best-of-3 in Acapulco is not best-of-5 Centre Court Wimbledon. And Novak hasn’t loss on that court in nine years.
The Pick: Djokovic in four

It’s crazy to think that for a guy who has stated he doesn’t even like the sport, he’s now three sets from becoming a Wimbledon champion. And likely the closest he’ll ever be. We’ll know in less than 24 hours if Kyrgios can break the Big 4 spell over Wimbledon.