Wimbledon 2022: 3 areas Novak Djokovic needs to improve on before the SFs
Novak Djokovic is in roller-coaster kind of form in this year’s Wimbledon. The Serbian tennis star started his pursuit of seventh SW19 title with a hard fought four-set win over Soon Woo Kwoon.
In the next two rounds, he was at his ruthless best and dispatched Kokkianakis and Kecmanovic in straight sets. In the second week of Wimbledon 2022, his form dipped against Rijthoven and was again made to play four sets.
Against Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals, he looked out of sorts in the first two sets as he barely got into the baseline rallies against the talented Italian.
Never write off Novak Djokovic. Ever.
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At the end of the first set and at the start of the second, Djokovic lost 15 out of 20 points played, and it looked like the World No. 3 would make an early exit at SW 19. But the Serb displayed his tenacity and fighting spirit in the third set and started hitting winners and raised his level, making life difficult for first-time quarterfinalist Jannik Sinner.
This is how champions play 💫
Over to you, @DjokerNole...
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After sprinting to victory towards the end, the Serb will hope to get into top form in the semifinals against home favorite Norrie. To be at his best, Djokovic needs to better his performance in three areas.
3) Serve
In the five matches that the Serbian has played so far, only once in the second round was his first serve percentage of more than 70%. He looked imperious against Thanasi Kokkinakis in the near two-hour match and his serve consistently helped him stay on top throughout the contest.
Contrast that match to the win against Sinner when he lost his serve twice in the first and second set. Sinner was easily able to read Djokovic’s serve before the World No. 3 started finding his range in the last three sets. If the Serb wants to reach the final of SW19, he needs to ensure that he makes 70% of first serves.
2) Forehand
While Novak Djokovic's backhand has caused a lot of damage to the opponents, his forehand seems to be the weak link. He has consistently made unforced errors and fewer winners on the forehand side in the five matches that he has played so far at Wimbledon.
Since his next opponent is a left-hander with a weaker backhand wing, Novak Djokovic must fine-tune his forehand and target the British No. 1s weaker side.
1) Improve drop shots and slices
A lot of times in the first two sets, Novak Djokovic shyed away from long baseline rallies by resorting to drop shots and slices. Jannik Sinner was easily able to hunt down those drop shots and win points given the Serb's poor timing and placement.
To win against the British No. 1, the six-time Wimbledon champion needs to use the drop shots effectively as Norrie is not very comfortable coming into the net.