Novak Djokovic insists he “isn’t chasing anybody” in his quest for a 20th Grand Slam trophy this week at The Championships, Wimbledon.
Speaking after his 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 quarter-final victory over Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday, the Serbian is now two match wins away from equalling the majors tally of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
“I'm not chasing anybody,” said Djokovic, who has lost just one set in five matches over the past 10 days at the All England Club. “I'm making my own path and my own journey, my own history. I'm privileged to be part of history of this sport that I love.
“I know about a lot of stats. I don't know about all of them. But they do motivate me even more to play my best tennis at the events that count the most in our sport.”
The 34-year-old Serbian, who is currently riding a 16-match winning streak, has won the first two Grand Slam championships of the year — a ninth Australian Open crown (d. Medvedev) in February and a second title at Roland Garros (d. Tsitsipas) last month.
“Overall, I feel like I've been hitting the ball well throughout the entire tournament, putting myself exactly where I want to be [in the] semi-finals,” said Djokovic. “[I’m] not spending too much energy. Now I really have to be consistent from the first to last point in next match, and hopefully another one on Sunday.
“I don't really regret not playing longer on the court. [I’ve] had enough match play. Obviously, [it’s a] different surface [at] Roland Garros, but [I’ve had] a lot of different match play in the past couple of months that [has] put me in the right frame of mind, I think, for what's coming up. I had enough training on grass. I'm confident.”
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Djokovic has compiled a 32-3 match record this season, which also includes the Belgrade Open title (d. Molcan). He will now prepare to face Canadian 10th seed Denis Shapovalov, who will be competing in his first major semi-final, on Friday.
“We played a tight two sets this year [at the] ATP Cup, which was [our] first official match of the season,” said Djokovic, who beat Shapovalov 7-5, 7-5. “The courts at Australian Open were pretty quick this year, so I could get a little bit of an understanding of how well he was serving.
“You don't get too many opportunities on his service game, especially here on grass. I've seen him play against [Andy] Murray [in the Wimbledon third round]. He's really feeling great. It's impressive the way he's been playing… I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be a battle and I need to be at my best.”
Djokovic leads Shapovalov 6-0 in their ATP Head2Head series.
Speaking after his 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 quarter-final victory over Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics on Wednesday, the Serbian is now two match wins away from equalling the majors tally of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
“I'm not chasing anybody,” said Djokovic, who has lost just one set in five matches over the past 10 days at the All England Club. “I'm making my own path and my own journey, my own history. I'm privileged to be part of history of this sport that I love.
“I know about a lot of stats. I don't know about all of them. But they do motivate me even more to play my best tennis at the events that count the most in our sport.”
The 34-year-old Serbian, who is currently riding a 16-match winning streak, has won the first two Grand Slam championships of the year — a ninth Australian Open crown (d. Medvedev) in February and a second title at Roland Garros (d. Tsitsipas) last month.
“Overall, I feel like I've been hitting the ball well throughout the entire tournament, putting myself exactly where I want to be [in the] semi-finals,” said Djokovic. “[I’m] not spending too much energy. Now I really have to be consistent from the first to last point in next match, and hopefully another one on Sunday.
“I don't really regret not playing longer on the court. [I’ve] had enough match play. Obviously, [it’s a] different surface [at] Roland Garros, but [I’ve had] a lot of different match play in the past couple of months that [has] put me in the right frame of mind, I think, for what's coming up. I had enough training on grass. I'm confident.”
View Schedule | Listen To Radio Wimbledon | List Of Broadcasters (PDF)
Djokovic has compiled a 32-3 match record this season, which also includes the Belgrade Open title (d. Molcan). He will now prepare to face Canadian 10th seed Denis Shapovalov, who will be competing in his first major semi-final, on Friday.
“We played a tight two sets this year [at the] ATP Cup, which was [our] first official match of the season,” said Djokovic, who beat Shapovalov 7-5, 7-5. “The courts at Australian Open were pretty quick this year, so I could get a little bit of an understanding of how well he was serving.
“You don't get too many opportunities on his service game, especially here on grass. I've seen him play against [Andy] Murray [in the Wimbledon third round]. He's really feeling great. It's impressive the way he's been playing… I'm looking forward to it. It's going to be a battle and I need to be at my best.”
Djokovic leads Shapovalov 6-0 in their ATP Head2Head series.