LONDON – In the era of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, very few stand a real chance of winning a Grand Slam. Beating one is already tough; taking down both in best-of-five matches seems nearly impossible—unless your name is Novak Djokovic and you’re playing injury-free at your favourite tournament.
“I probably have my best chance against them here,” said Djokovic after defeating Australia’s Alex de Minaur 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court. The Serbian has now reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the 16th time in his career and racked up 101 wins at the All England Club.
“If I do face one or both of them, which I hope I do, it would mean I’ve reached the final, and in that case I’ll obviously try to bring out my best tennis to win. I believe I have a chance, no doubt. My results on grass are proof of the confidence I have on this surface. I’ve played very solid tennis this year, so I’m feeling good about myself,” added the seven-time Wimbledon champion.
In an interview with CLAY, Djokovic’s former coach Goran Ivanisevic said the Serbian is the only player capable of defeating the Italian and the Spaniard at the majors.
“I don’t see anyone beating them unless someone beats them up the night before (laughs). I just don’t see how. Look at the Australian Open final—Zverev was there, world No. 3, a phenomenal player, and it was a joke of a final—Sascha had no chance. Then look at the Roland Garros final—it was tennis from another planet. The only one who can stand between them is Novak. Maybe I’m a bit emotional, but he still has a chance to win,” said the Croatian, who coached Djokovic from 2019 until 2024.
“Sinner and Alcaraz own the tour now. Novak is the only one who can still challenge them and beat them,” said the 2001 Wimbledon champion.
Who’s the favourite to win at the All England Club? According to Ivanisevic, it’s Djokovic. According to Djokovic, it’s Sinner or Alcaraz.
“Looking at the draw, I don’t see anyone beating him before the semifinals. And he’s never lost to Sinner here. OK, he did in Australia and Paris, but here he’s beaten him twice. For me, Novak is the favourite, no matter how emotional that sounds. Alcaraz has beaten him twice, but last year Novak was coming off knee surgery, and in 2023 we all remember how close it was. He’s the best grass court player, he has the experience, he knows exactly what it takes here,” added the former world No. 2.
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“I love Goran!” said Djokovic with a smile. “I’m happy he loves me back, but I don’t think I’m the favourite against those guys.”
In the quarterfinals, Djokovic will face Italian Flavio Cobolli, with a little help from his son, as he chases an all-time record 25th Grand Slam title.
Young Stefan is in London enjoying time around his dad’s fellow pros and recently even got the chance to hit with the 23-year-old world No. 24 on the Aorangi practice courts.
“Of course I’ll ask him for advice. I’ll have a chat with my son to see what he noticed in Cobolli’s game,” Djokovic joked.
