Roger Federer to have Wimbledon dream dashed as Novak Djokovic backed for 20th Grand Slam

French Open: Federer reacts to his victory over Köpfe

When you subscribe we will use the information you provide to send you these newsletters. Sometimes they’ll include recommendations for other related newsletters or services we offer. Our Privacy Notice explains more about how we use your data, and your rights. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Roger Federer has made it clear his priority is to win Wimbledon this year but the Swiss has been warned the chances of that are increasingly unlikely. Federer is currently level with Rafael Nadal on a record 20 mens’ Grand Slam singles titles. However, Novak Djokovic is closing in on the legendary duo.

Djokovic won his 19th Slam on Sunday, coming from two sets down to beat Stefanos Tsitsipas in the final of the French Open.

Federer pulled out at the fourth round stage, citing concerns over the knee injury that kept him out of the majority of last season.

Speaking in May, the 39-year-old insisted his priority was to play at Wimbledon again, in an attempt to win his ninth singles title at SW19.

Federer said: “That’s obviously the huge priority right now, to win Wimbledon in a few weeks’ time.

“That’s always the number one goal in the season.”

However, seven-time Grand Slam winner Mats Wilander says world No 1 Djokovic will instead go into Wimbledon as the strong favourite.

“We are now heading into the season where we would have to put Novak as the favourite to win Wimbledon most probably, favourite at the US Open because of what he does on hard courts,” Wilander said on Eurosport.

“So yes, it’s on [Djokovic winning his 20th Slam] and the way he looks, he looks young, he looks so fresh at the end, he looks scary good and motivated.”

Wilander is in awe of Djokovic’s ability to fight back from two sets down.

He added: “I’m not sure what he tells himself in the mind when he is two sets to love down.

“Is he able to completely forget what the score is and is it just about the fact that he spent two hours with his opponent and now knows exactly what he needs to do?

“He pulls off the right shots at the right time. He looks fresher and fresher as the match goes on, he’s so clever, he’s strong and he’s so calm these days.

“He looks unbeatable in the third, fourth and fifth.”

Meanwhile, Wilander says it was a blow for Tsitsipas in his first Slam final but reckons he will get plenty of chances in the future to break his duck.

“It is a big hit [for Stefanos] because being up two sets to love, and he felt in that third set he just needed to hold serve, he was just a point or two away from winning this match,” Wilander said.

“He most probably will win Grand Slams, but losing your first final after being two sets to love up doesn’t give him too much scar tissue because it’s going to be tough.”

Source: Read Full Article