Novak Djokovic aims to shed grasscourt rust in Wimbledon second round
Novak Djokovic dropped a set on the way to the second round at Wimbledon on Monday and did not look like the Mr Consistency who has become the first player to win 80 singles matches in each of the Grand Slam tournaments. But his opponents know that once the Serbian finds his 2022 grass legs, they will more than likely follow first-round victim Kwon Soo-woo out of the event. Djokovic had played no competitive tennis on grass coming into the tournament and ground out a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory against the lively South Korean. "I did not start or did not play at my best but I think when I needed to find the right shots, I did," Djokovic said. "I know I can do better." The top seed won three out of four Grand Slam titles last year but lost in the U.S. Open final in September then caused controversy when he arrived to defend his Australian Open title only to be held and then deported because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19.
Read AlsoWimbledon: Carlos Alcaraz battles to win, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray drop a set before advancing; Danielle Collins biggest casualty of Day 1Six-time champion and top seed Djokovic saw off South Korea's Kwon Soo-woo in four sets. Meanwhile, Alcaraz, a potential quarter-final opponent for Djokovic, came back from two sets to one down to defeat Jan-Lennard Struff. Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins was knocked out by Marie Bouzkova.
He then lost in the French Open to eventual winner Rafael Nadal who moved ahead of the Serbian on 22 titles to Djokovic's 20. The Australian debacle lost him some popularity. "I've experienced something that I've never experienced in my life in Australia. So this post-Australian period of next several months was challenging emotionally for me because
