Tennis Djokovic’s Miraculous Recovery Has Him Eager to Be the Best of Them All at Wimbledon

On June 5, Novak Djokovic (3rd) entered the operating room to undergo surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee. This July 14, one month and nine days later, he will go to the Center Court of the All England to win his 25th Grand Slam title. .

A series of events that make no sense, that border on the impossible, but that the Serbian achieved without major problems. “It’s one of the recoveries that would be in my top, maybe the 2nd or 3rd in terms of time it took me to get back to the desired level,” he admitted before beating the Italian Lorenzo Musetti (25th) in the semi-final.

A miraculous recovery that put a smile back on his face. And 2024 was a nightmare for one of the best tennis players in history. He started the year unable to defend his Australian Open title and then fell in the third round of the Masters 1000 in Indian Wells. Uncomfortable feelings that did not change on clay, where despite reaching the semi-finals in Monte Carlo and Geneva, he suffered a resounding 6-2, 6-3 defeat against Alejandro Tabilo in the round of 16 in Rome. To make matters worse, in Paris, his meniscus tore and with it the big question of whether the Serb would be able to turn the situation around. With a lot of physical work and maximum precautions, he achieved it. .

At Wimbledon he showed his best version, putting on a show when he could and fighting when necessary. . Now he can breathe easy and is eager to win the first title of the season.

The consecration on the British grass will also allow her to reach 25 Grand Slam titles, more than anyone in the history of the sport. In the men’s category, she has been unrivaled for some time, but she still needs a consecration to surpass the legendary Margaret Court.

As if that were not enough, this Sunday Nole will also have the chance to equal Roger Federer as the man with the most Wimbledon titles with eight. She will also be one length away from equalling Martina Navatrilova, who achieved nine between 1978 and 1990.

At Wimbledon 2023, Novak Djokovic once again saw his dream of winning all four Grand Slam tournaments in the same year shattered. He had conquered Australia and Roland Garros without any problems, so London, where he had been champion since 2018, seemed like the least of the challenges.

But Carlos Alcaraz shattered the illusion. The Spaniard, who had won only one title on grass in his career, won the final in more than four hours in a hard-fought 1-6, 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 6-4, winning his first Wimbledon and his second Grand Slam title. .

Djokovic never denied that it was a painful, even unexpected, defeat, admitting that he imagined that the Murcian would cause him problems on clay or cement, but that it rarely occurred to him that it would also happen on grass.

A year ago he lost a dream opportunity and, for the same reason, it no longer occurs to him to find himself again without the jackpot. He will not have the chance to conquer all four majors in a calendar year, but even today the stakes are much higher: 2017 was the last time he said goodbye to Wimbledon without having won at least one Grand Slam title in the season.

On the other side of the network, the story is completely different. At 21, the Spaniard is just three sets away from becoming the sixth tennis player to win back-to-back Roland Garros and Wimbledon titles. joining a list where only famous names from white sport appear: Rod Laver (1969), Björn Borg (1978, 1979 and 1980), Rafael Nadal (2008 and 2010), Roger Federer (2009) and Novak Djokovic (2021).

His second title at the All England Lawn Tennis Club will also allow him to reach four Grand Slam titles, becoming the third active tennis player (only behind Djokovic and Nadal) with the most major trophies. Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka will be distanced with three consecrations each.