"Never write him off, he will fight until the end"- Mark Philippoussis on Novak Djokovic
Mark Philippoussis issued a warning not to rule Novak Djokovic out of contention under any circumstances. He made the remarks following the Serb's thrilling victory over Italian teen sensation Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals.
Djokovic's title defense is off to a good start with wins against Soonwoo Kwoon, Thanasi Kokkinakis, Miomir Kecmanovic, Tim van Ritjhoven and Jannik Sinner. The six-time champion made a stunning comeback from two-sets-to-love down to beat Sinner in the quarterfinals of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships on Tuesday.
Novak Djokovic does it again, coming back from two sets to love down (for the third time in his career in #Wimbledon) to defeat Jannik Sinner 5-7, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-2 and reach the semi-finals for the 11th time.
The defending champion awaits the winner of Norrie-Goffin.
In light of this, former Wimbledon finalist Mark Philippousis examined Djokovic's match in a recent interview with Sportklub. He came to the conclusion that the Serb would fight to the end and leave no stones unturned.
"Never write Novak off," Philippoussis said. "We all know that he will fight until the end, and when he was losing 2-1, it was almost as if it felt like it was 2-2 in sets, that's how it is with Djokovic at the Slams."
The Australian also heaped praise on Djokovic's opponent Jannik Sinner. He believed the Italian was in outstanding form during their encounter but in the end was unable to cope with the pressure Novak Djokovic put on him.
"Novak was a bit slow, but Sinner is dangerous," said Philippoussis. "He has strong and powerful shots, and he had nothing to lose, so he played relaxed. He came out on the court very inspired, but in the end Djokovic was too tough for him. Even at the end of the match, he seemed fresh to me."
Djokovic participated in 53rd quarterfinal while Sinner in just his third, so the match featured a meeting of two talents at the very opposite stages of their careers. The young Italian, though, gave a performance that belied his youth, but eventually ran out of gas as the Serb rallied to reach his 11th Wimbledon semifinal.
"Novak Djokovic was a slight favorite for me even before the tournament"- Mark Philippoussis
Mark Philippoussis went on to discuss how Novak Djokovic always has sufficient energy to ensure that his opponent never wins the game. He also talked about the Serb's tactic of putting his opponents under pressure to get the job done.
"You always know he has enough energy and fuel in the tank and you know you're not going to win the match there - he can play ten sets if he needs to," Philippoussis said. "That's why Siner should have pressed harder at 2-0, or should have been more concentrated at the start of the fourth attempt, but it's not easy against Novak."
"He puts the opponents under enormous pressure - he is always present, moves incredibly and forces the opponent to always play an extra good shot. Then you shoot harder and closer to the line, and the misses come," he added.
As per Philippoussis, Novak Djokovic was always his favorite even before the tournament commenced its course and he expects the 20-time Grand Slam winner to be "fresh" for his semifinal encounter against home favorite Cameron Norrie.
"He was a slight favorite for me even before the tournament, that's still the case," Philippoussis said. "Rafa is yet to reach the quarterfinals, but for Novak this will not be a problem, as he has now played five sets. I expect him to be fresh for the semi-finals."