Djokovic Rides 10-Game Surge Into Wimbledon Semi-finals

Winning 10 points in a row is impressive. Claiming 10 games in a row in the Wimbledon quarter-finals is on another level.

That is exactly what defending champion Novak Djokovic did on Wednesday, overcoming an early deficit against 2017 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up David Goffin to beat the No. 21 seed 6-4, 6-0, 6-2 in one hour and 57 minutes.

The World No. 1 is into his ninth semi-final at the All England Club, tying Boris Becker, Arthur Gore and Herbert Lawford for the third-most trips to the last four here all-time. Djokovic is pursuing his fifth crown at SW19, and a victory at this event would also give him his fourth Grand Slam crown in his past five major tournaments.

Djokovic vs. Goffin Match Stats

Djokovic’s only Grand Slam loss since the start of Wimbledon last year came at Roland Garros, where he fell in the semi-finals against Dominic Thiem. The 32-year-old has won 31 of his past 32 matches at the majors, emerging victorious in straight sets from 23 of those battles.

In the last four, Djokovic will face Spaniard Roberto Bautista Agut or Argentine Guido Pella. Bautista Agut, who holds a two-set lead in that match, has won two consecutive meetings against Djokovic, both of which came earlier this year, in Doha and Miami. Djokovic leads their rivalry 7-3.

Djokovic appeared in for a battle when Goffin broke for 4-3 in the opening set, striking the ball cleanly to make the Serbian uncomfortable in early baseline rallies.

The Belgian took a 30/0 lead on his serve in the next game, and hit a curling slice out wide, which upon review missed by just centimetres. Goffin then double faulted and on the next point missed an inside-in forehand long to let slip his momentum. Djokovic broke back with a forehand drop volley winner and never looked back from there.

Djokovic was unable to gain much advantage with his first serve in the opening set, winning only 63 per cent of points on his first delivery in the first set. But the rest of the way, the top seed won 88 per cent of his first serve points en route to taking a 6-1 FedEx ATP Head2Head series lead against Goffin. 

While in the early going Goffin was attacking Djokovic’s forehand well and hitting clean passing shots whenever he was able to draw the Serbian in, Djokovic slowly brought the match onto his racquet, playing controlled, attacking tennis and changing directions down the line seemingly at will, especially off the backhand side. During his 10-game winning stretch, the 32-year-old consistently placed his returns within just feet of the baseline, keeping Goffin on the back foot.

Did You Know?
Djokovic has now won 70 matches at Wimbledon (70-10), becoming just the fourth man in the Open Era to reach the 70-win mark at the grass-court Grand Slam, joining Roger Federer, Jimmy Connors and Boris Becker.