Djokovic relieved to be in quarters

LONDON (AP):

RIGHT BEFORE Wimbledon began, Novak Djokovic declared it was the tournament that gave him the best chance to claim an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam singles trophy. Made sense, really, given that he’s won seven titles there already and reached the past six finals.

For one uncharacteristically unsteady set in the fourth round yesterday, it sure didn’t look as if that would happen this year. Djokovic, though, turned things around and avoided what would have been his earliest exit at the All England Club since 2016, coming through for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory over 11th-seeded Alex de Minaur at Centre Court.

With eight-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer sitting in the front row of the Royal Box, very little went right at the outset for the 38-year-old Djokovic on the grass below, during a breezy afternoon with the temperature in the 60s Fahrenheit (teens Celsius), a week after matches were contested in record-breaking heat.

“A lot of challenging moments for me,” Djokovic said right after the win, then later called it a “big, big relief” not to get pushed to a fifth set.

He trailed 4-1 in the fourth — before taking the last five games and 14 of the final 15 points.

“Lifted his level,” de Minaur said, “big-time.”

Djokovic’s bid for an eighth Wimbledon title and 25th Grand Slam singles trophy overall will continue against number-22 Flavio Cobolli of Italy. Cobolli reached his first major quarter-final with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (3) victory over 2014 US Open champion and two-time major runner-up Marin Cilic.

Number-10 Ben Shelton improved to 3-0 against Lorenzo Sonego at majors this year by beating him 3-6, 6-1, 7-6 (1), 7-5. Shelton’s first Wimbledon quarter-final will come against number-one Jannik Sinner, who moved on despite a painful right elbow and a two-set deficit when number-19 Grigor Dimitrov quit because of an injured chest muscle.

Among the women, number-seven Mirra Andreeva, an 18-year-old Russian, became the youngest player to reach the women’s quarter-finals at Wimbledon since Nicole Vaidisova in 2007, beating number-10 Emma Navarro 6-2, 6-3. Andreeva next meets Belinda Bencic, who defeated number-18 Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-6 (4), 6-4. Iga Swiatek, the five-time major champion who is seeded number eight, was a 6-4, 6-1 winner against number-23 Clara Tauson and will play number-19 Liudmila Samsonova, who advanced to her first major quarter-final with a 7-5, 7-5 victory against Jessica Bouzas Maneiro.

The women’s quarter-finals today are number-one Aryna Sabalenka vs Laura Siegemund, and number-13 Amanda Anisimova vs Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. The men’s quarter-finals today are number-two Carlos Alcaraz vs Cam Norrie, and number-five Taylor Fritz vs number-17 Karen Khachanov.