Djokovic Eyes Eighth – And Final? – Wimbledon Title

Novak Djokovic Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic (photo: Jürgen Hasenkopf)

WIMBLEDON/WASHINGTON, June 29, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

A year ago at this time, as seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic sat down to his pre-tournament news conference, the No. 1 topic on everyone’s mind and agenda was the condition of the iconic Serbian’s right knee. After all, less than a month earlier, Djokovic suffered a tear of his medial meniscus in the fourth round at Roland-Garros.

When Djokovic opted for surgery less than a month before the start of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships to repair the tear, he was all but counted out competing for the title. After all, recovery generally takes three to six weeks. But here was Djokovic at the All England Club ready to go – and he made a valiant run all the way to the title match before losing to Carlos Alcaraz, 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4). En route, he defeated Vit Kopriva, Jacob Fearnley, Alexei Popyrin, Holger Rune, Alex de Minaur and Lorenzo Musetti. Soon after, Djokovic won an Olympic gold medal at the Paris Summer Games.

Fast forward 12 months, the 38-year-old has returned to the All England Club hungry as ever as he makes another run to winning a men’s record-extending 25 major titles. He’s been stuck on 24 Grand Slam crowns since winning the 2023 US Open. The last trophy he lifted was his 100th career ATP Tour title won last month on clay at Geneva in an ATP 250 clay-court tune-up for Roland-Garros, where he made a run to the semifinals before losing to World No. 1 Jannik Sinner.

This week, the World No. 6 Djokovic, who is seeded sixth, played a very public practice set against the two-time defending champion Alcaraz on Centre Court. After defeating Sinner at Wimbledon in the 2022 quarterfinals and 2023 semifinals, Djokovic is seeded for a quarterfinal showdown with British No. 1 Jack Draper, who is seeded fourth. But first, Djokovic must defeat No. 80 Alexandre Muller of France in his opening-round match on Tuesday.

Then, Djokovic likely will face British wild card Daniel Evans and could meet No. 30 seed Alex Michelsen of the United States in the third round and No. 11 seed de Minaur from Australia in the fourth round. Then, it would be a lot to ask of anyone to have to beat Draper, Sinner and Alcaraz in back-to-back-to back matches to win the Wimbledon title. But those are the cards Djokovic has been dealt with this year’s draw.

After he played his last match at Roland-Garros, Djokovic took his time walking off Court Philippe-Chatrier, not knowing if he would be back next year. He said during his final post-match news conference in Paris: “Wimbledon is next, which is my childhood favorite tournament.

“I’m going to do everything possible to get myself ready. I guess my best chances maybe are [at] Wimbledon or a faster hard court, maybe Australia or something like that.”

While there aren’t many last best chances left for Djokovic, imagine what the reaction in the tennis world would be like if he’s able to make another deep run at the All England Club – and become the oldest player in the Open Era to win a major title. The last of his seven Wimbledon crowns came in 2022.

On Saturday, as Djokovic met the media at Wimbledon he had plenty to say:

“It’s great to be back. I love Wimbledon. I’ve always loved it.

“I think in the last six editions, I had six finals. I’ve been playing very well here, maybe it’s been the most consistent Grand Slam for me in the last 10 years.

“When I come here, I feel extra inspired to deliver the best tennis. We all know the tradition and the heritage and the culture of this wonderful tournament that has sustained that for so many years.

“It’s so impressive every single time you walk into this premises. You feel that beautiful tradition.”

When Djokovic was asked if this could be his last Wimbledon, he said:

“Whether it could be my ‘last dance’, I’m not sure. My wish is to play for several more years. I would love to be healthy physically and also mentally motivated to keep on playing at the highest level. That’s the goal, but you never know at this stage.

“I would probably agree that Wimbledon could be the best chance because of the results I had, because of how I feel, how I play in Wimbledon.”

Asked to rate his chances of winning Wimbledon once again, Djokovic said: “Let’s see. I like the way I feel right now physically.

“Tennis-wise I’ve been playing good on the practice sessions. Obviously, it’s completely different when you start a tournament. But yeah, I’ll try to have a very good tournament and go as far as I can.”

All good between Sabalenka and Gauff

Women’s No. 1 and top seed Aryna Sabalenka said during her sit-down with the media on Saturday that her relationship with Coco Gauff is “all good” despite downplaying her efforts during the Roland-Garros final three weeks ago.

Then, the 27-year-old Belarusian said at the time it “hurt to show such terrible tennis.” She described it as “the worst final I ever played” after Gauff defeated her in three sets.

This week, Sabalenka and Gauff have shared some practice hits on Centre Court and shared via social media some very highly-choreographed dance moves together. Lots of laughter and smiles between the top two seeds.

Sabalenka also shared practice time with seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic during the week.

“Novak is the best,” Sabalenka said during her pre-tournament news conference. “First of all, I was able to hit with him, which not every guy would be able to do. Then you can chat with him. He will give his honest advice. It’s amazing to hear the opinion of such a legend.”

Sabalenka added: “If you give Novak an opportunity to talk, he’s not going to stop. I wish I could stay there for four hours and just keep chatting. We were just chatting about stuff that I’m kind of struggling with a little bit. I’m really thankful for the advice he gave me.”

Around the All England Club

World No. 39 Hubert Hurkacz withdrew from Wimbledon on Friday due to irritation of his synovial membrane. Last year, the Polish No. 1 tore his right meniscus during his second-round match at Wimbledon against Arthur Fils.

“Over the past few weeks, you’ve seen me on court through both the highs and the more challenging moments. Unfortunately, today I have to share some difficult news,” Hurkacz wrote in a social media post Friday afternoon. “After careful consideration and consultation with my team, we have made the decision to withdraw from this year’s Wimbledon.

“During my preparations, my body reacted with irritation of the synovial membrane. This is a part of the ongoing recovery process following my recent surgery and requires rest and appropriate treatment.”

A 2021 Wimbledon semifinalist, Hurkacz lost to Joao Fonseca in the opening round at Roland-Garos, then began his grass-court season in ‘s-Hertogenbosch by defeating Roberto Bautista Agut before withdrawing from his second-round match.

Hurkacz was drawn to play wild card Billy Harris of Great Britain in the first round. He’s been replaced in the draw by Serbian lucky loser Dusan Lajovic.

Monday’s Wimbledon order of play

By the numbers

Wimbledon is the oldest tennis championship in the world. The Wimbledon Championships have taken place at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club since 1877 and have been at the current ground on Church Road since the 1922 tournament.

“Quotable …”

“In a sense, you’re always hunting because you’re always going for the titles — in my also privileged position — the records and more history. I do feel that I’m always in that position of going for something with the attitude of trying to win rather than trying to defend.

“Even though I have been many times in my career in that position whether it’s the defending champion or being No. 1 in the world, you feel slightly different because I feel everyone wants your position.”

– Seven-time Wimbledon champion and former World No. 1 Novak Djokovic of Serbia, during his pre-tournament news conference on Saturday.

 

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