London, July 7 (IANS) Former Champion Novak Djokovic recovered from a shaky start to defeat Australia’s Alex de Minaur 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 on Monday and book his place in the quarterfinals of Wimbledon 2025 for a remarkable 16th time. The seven-time champion was far from his best in the early exchanges but showed trademark resilience and composure to claw back control and edge closer to a record-equalling eighth title at the All England Club.

De Minaur, who was forced to withdraw before facing Djokovic in the quarterfinals last year due to an injury, started strong in windy conditions on Centre Court. The World No. 11 broke Djokovic three times to dominate the opening set, while the 37-year-old Serb struggled to find rhythm and deal with swirling gusts.

“I am still trying to process the whole match and what happened on court,” Djokovic admitted. “It wasn’t a great start for me. He broke my serve three times in the first set. Very windy, swirly conditions…he was just managing better with the play from the back of the court.”

But as he’s done countless times in his career, Djokovic found a way back. At 4-5 down in the second set, he saved break points and held firm to level the match. That proved the turning point as he tightened up his baseline game, reduced errors, and moved De Minaur side to side in classic fashion. He eventually sealed victory after three hours and 18 minutes, rallying from 1-4 down in the fourth set.

“It was a lot of cat-and-mouse play…he is one of the quickest players we have on Tour. On grass where the ball bounces low, it is extremely difficult to play someone like him if you’re not feeling the ball really well,” Djokovic said. “He exposes all your weaknesses, and I was pleased to hang in tough in the right moments.”

With the win, Djokovic improved his Wimbledon match record to 101-11, trailing only Roger Federer’s 105 wins at the tournament. Federer, who watched from the Royal Box, even got a cheeky mention. “Sometimes, I wish I had a serve and volley and a nice touch from the gentleman who is standing right there,” Djokovic joked while pointing to Federer.

Next up for Djokovic is Italian youngster Flavio Cobolli, who reached his maiden Wimbledon quarter-final by defeating Marin Cilic. With three wins now separating him from a 25th Grand Slam title and potential eighth Wimbledon crown, the Serbian is once again within striking distance of history.

–IANS

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