Novak Djokovic has expressed that the opportunity to make tennis history will serve as motivation as he prepares to face Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final. Despite undergoing knee surgery just five weeks ago, the 37-year-old aims to secure his eighth Wimbledon title and a record 25th Grand Slam victory on Sunday. Djokovic also seeks to avenge his close defeat to Alcaraz in last year’s final.
“I’m aware of what’s on the line. Any Grand Slam that I play, there’s always history now on the line,” said Djokovic.
“I will try to use that as a fuel to play my best tennis.”
On what promises to be an emotional day, the Wimbledon final will be witnessed by Catherine, Princess of Wales, marking her second public appearance since being diagnosed with cancer earlier this year. UK media have reported that she will also present the trophy to the champion.
Novak Djokovic will be competing in his 10th Wimbledon final and his 37th final at the 75 majors he has participated in. A victory would secure his 25th Grand Slam title, surpassing the current record of 24 titles he shares with Margaret Court across men’s and women’s tennis.
“It serves as a great motivation, but at the same time it’s also a lot of pressure and expectations,” added the Serb.
“Every time I step out on the court now, even though I’m 37 and competing with the 21-year-olds, I still expect myself to win most of the matches, and people expect me to win 99 percent of the matches that I play.”
Novak Djokovic arrived at Wimbledon amid concerns about his form and fitness. The 22-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner had recently claimed Djokovic’s Australian Open title and his world number one ranking, while Carlos Alcaraz succeeded him as French Open champion.
Before arriving at the All England Club, Djokovic had not reached a final this season and had yet to defeat a top-10 player.
Djokovic played his first-round match against qualifier Vit Kopriva just 27 days after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus, an injury that had forced him to withdraw from his quarter-final match at Roland Garros. Even on the eve of Wimbledon, Djokovic was uncertain about his ability to compete.
‘Not reckless’
“We agreed that we would not talk about my guaranteed Wimbledon participation until three, four days before the tournament starts,” explained Djokovic.
“I understand why people were thinking it’s premature, it’s maybe reckless, but I don’t think it was, to be honest.”
Carlos Alcaraz, 16 years younger than Djokovic, is preparing for his fourth Grand Slam final, aiming to add a second Wimbledon title to his breakthrough at the 2022 US Open and his recent French Open victory. His win in the 2023 Wimbledon final ended Djokovic’s 34-match winning streak at the tournament.
Alcaraz has had a somewhat inconsistent tournament. Despite a tough journey, including a comeback victory over Daniil Medvedev in the semi-finals after dropping the first set, he remains focused on becoming only the sixth man to achieve back-to-back French Open and Wimbledon victories.
In their recent encounters, Djokovic has prevailed over Alcaraz, winning their last two meetings: in the 2023 Cincinnati Open final and then in the semi-finals of the ATP Tour Finals.
Alcaraz aims to make Sunday a memorable day for Spain by securing the Wimbledon title before the country’s national football team faces England in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin.
“Being a Spaniard, yeah, it would be a perfect Sunday,” said Alcaraz.
“It’s going to be a really fun day for Spanish people watching my final, watching the Euros final.”
Alcaraz has been warned to expect a super-charged Djokovic, who has swept into the final with two straight-sets wins punctuated by an injury walkover handed to him by Alex de Minaur in the last eight.
