Almost 4 weeks after having surgical procedure on a torn proper meniscus, Novak Djokovic dismissed damage considerations in his first match at Wimbledon.
Djokovic suffered the damage throughout his fourth-round victory on the French Open, forcing him to withdraw from Roland Garros. He underwent surgical procedure on June 5, so it appeared he would not play at Wimbledon and would put together for the Paris Olympics as an alternative.
Nonetheless, he returned to Centre Court docket on Tuesday and placed on a clinic in opposition to qualifier Vit Kopriva, coasting to a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 victory in one hour and 58 minutes. Charlie Morgan of The Telegraph reported Kopriva scored solely two factors off of Djokovic’s serve by the primary two units.
In fact, Djokovic cannot proceed to depend on his serve in opposition to higher opponents. Kopriva, 27, is way much less skilled than the 24-time Grand Slam winner. In accordance with the Night Commonplace’s Matt Majendie, this was Kopriva’s second match in a significant event, in comparison with Djokovic’s 420th.
Regardless, this match was a check to find out whether or not Djokovic was coping with rust. Apart from letting Kopriva save six break factors within the fourth recreation of the primary set, he handed.
“I used to be happy with how I felt on the courtroom,” Djokovic mentioned in his post-match interview, via the Impartial’s Luke Baker. “I did not understand how every thing would unfold. Apply classes are fairly completely different to matches, so I am extraordinarily glad with how I felt and performed right now. I attempted to actually concentrate on my recreation and never take into consideration the knee.”
If Djokovic wins the grass-court event, he’ll tie Roger Federer for essentially the most Wimbledon titles. This can be motivating him and fueling his exceptional restoration.