Novak Djokovic entered the quarterfinals of Wimbledon 2023, after defeating Hubert Hurkacz 7-6(6), 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4 in the fourth round on July 10.
Hurkacz had not lost a single service game in the tournament before facing Djokovic. The Polish player maintained this record despite losing two tie-break sets on July 9, before the match was postponed until today due to the organizers' "curfew" (11pm, London time). When the match resumed on July 10, Hurkacz continued to successfully hold his serve games in the third set, and also won the first return game of the match to take the match to a fourth set.
Hurkacz's 21-game winning streak came to an end in the fourth set, when he failed to save a third break point in game seven. It was also the only service game Hurkacz lost at the tournament. The 17th seed lost the fourth set 4-6 and was eliminated from Wimbledon by Djokovic.
Djokovic (right) shakes hands with Hurkacz after their Wimbledon fourth-round match on Centre Court on July 10. Photo: Reuters
The match did not see many rallies, as Hurkacz served so well. The Polish player hit 33 aces in the match, winning 81% of his first points. Djokovic also had 18 aces and won 89% of his first points.
Djokovic has won 11 straight tie-breaks at Roland Garros and Wimbledon. Djokovic won the first two sets in a row, even though his opponent had a mini-break first. In the first set, Hurkacz even had three set points when leading 6-3 in the nerve-wracking match, but lost five points in a row and lost 6-8. Djokovic admitted that he was lucky in the tie-break and said the match could have gone differently if his opponent had not missed the opportunity at the decisive moment.
Main developments of the Djokovic - Hurkacz match on July 10.
'I don't remember the last time I had such a hard time returning serve,' Djokovic said after the match. 'He serves so well and so powerfully, he's one of the best servers in the world. It wasn't really a fun match for me. It was so difficult to read his serve on the fastest surface in the sport.'
Djokovic has won 32 straight matches at Wimbledon. His next opponent is Andrey Rublev, who is in the quarterfinals for the first time. The two have met four times. Djokovic has won three, including a three-set clash at the Australian Open earlier this year.
Vy Anh
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