“I was nervous coming into this match” Novak Djokovic after his 2nd round win at the Wimbledon 2021
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Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic continues his title defense at the Wimbledon 2021 as he defeats old foe South African biggie Kevin Anderson 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 in 1 hour and 41 minutes.
Djokovic was not at his best service form today hitting only 9 aces as compared to his first match when he hit 25 aces in his win over Jack Draper. Anderson however hit 11 aces but that remained his only better stat against the Serbian who dominated the game otherwise in a clinical display on the Centre Court today.
“I felt a bit deflated” Novak talks about his today’s match
Djokovic certainly looked at his usual best as he wrapped up a straight-set victory in just 100 minutes. While the fans were delighted with the World No. 1’s performance, Djokovic was not feeling completely okay coming into the tie.
Djokovic talked about his 2016 experience when similar to 2021, he was defending his 3rd consecutive title but was defeated in the 3rd round of the 2016 Wimbledon to Sam Querrey. As he moves again into the 3rd round at this year’s Championships, he talked about getting wiser from his previous experience.
“I try to learn from the 2016 experience. I felt a bit deflated and, I don’t want to say demotivated, but different, it was the first time I felt like that. I am wiser and more experienced, but it’s only 3R, long ways to go. I’m striking the ball well, but I was nervous coming into the match, he is a big server, experienced, very dangerous opponent, especially in the early rounds.” said Djokovic.
Novak Djokovic talks about playing on Grass
With the unfortunate withdrawals of Adrian Mannarino and Serena Williams in back-to-back matches on the Centre Court on Day-2, the surface at Centre Court came under much scrutiny with the likes of Andy Murray calling it a much slippery surface. Djokovic himself had a fall in his first round match and after playing on the surface again today, he talked about the much debated issue.
“A few falls more than I would like. I don’t think it’s about courts, it was raining, before under the roof it’s more slippery. I haven’t played on grass for 2 years and I am coming from clay, so I am adapting to surface. As Wimbledon progresses, I’ll fall less.” said Djokovic about the surface today at the Centre Court.
Talking about his recoveries in between the matches with the bio-bubble in place which has been an issue for many players, Djokovic said, “Age is just a number, that’s my approach. It’s all about perception, mind over matter for a lot of things. I take care of my health, I recover fast and I hope to perform at this level for many years.”
Novak will now face Denis Kudla in Round 3.
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Sarthak Shitole
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