Where Serena Williams fell so agonisingly short last year, she has tipped Novak Djokovic to succeed in 2016. From one world No.1 to the other as Djokovic closes in on a rare calendar year grand slam: “You know, he has every opportunity to do it. I think he’ll get it easy. So he should be fine.”
Williams was just two matches away from emulating Maureen Connolly, Margaret Court and Steffi Graf when Italian Roberta Vinci caused an unthinkable upset in the US Open semi-finals last September. Djokovic, the first man to win the first two majors in a season since Jim Courier in 1992, is half-way towards joining Don Budge and Rod Laver in the similarly exclusive men’s club.
At this month’s French Open, he finally became just the eighth man to complete a career set of majors, in what he rightly declared to be “a remarkable achievement”. Like Williams before her disappointment in New York, Djokovic has won four successive majors. No wonder Kyrgios branded as “silly” a question about whom he considers the Wimbledon men’s favourite.
Yet the same query was put to Djokovic on Sunday as the defending champion, as is the All England Club tradition, prepared to open the centre court program on Monday. He mentioned the usual suspects – past champions Andy Murray and Roger Federer – plus Milos Raonic, the powerful Canadian rated by many as the next best chance. And then: “You know, Kyrgios is definitely one of the players that can go far.”
Indeed, if the pair meet, it will be in the final – a match Djokovic has contested for four of the past five years, winning three. The 28-year-old arrives at Wimbledon have followed his recent pattern of not having played an official grasscourt warm-up tournament, but having also flung the French Open monkey from his back, and thus needing time to recover both physically and emotionally.
“Of course, (the) situation this year is quite different from previous years because I’m coming in with a Roland Garros title for the first time,” he said on Sunday. “That gives me, obviously, a lot of confidence prior to this event.”
As if Djokovic needs it. He is, as he says, at the peak of his career, with 12 majors already, and pursuing Federer’s record of 17 with almost indecent haste. No wonder that when he was asked what he would see if he was across the net from Novak Djokovic right now, he admitted with a smile that “I like that side of staying with myself. I don’t want to go on the other side.”
Understandably, although British wildcard James Ward does not have the same. What the world No.177 will have, one would think, is a story to tell his grandkids. The one about his day on the world’s most famous court, against the man closing in on history. More of it.
“It’s going to be the first match on the untouched grass. That’s probably one of the most special tennis matches that you get to experience as a professional tennis player,” Djokovic said. “I’m looking forward to that. Obviously I know that he doesn’t have much to lose. The centre court is one of the cradles of our sport, will be hopefully packed, and we can enjoy some great match.”
