Novak Djokovic determined not to get derailed as he vows to ‘stick to stuff that makes me feel good’

Novak Djokovic is pushing thoughts of more history to one side as he continues to ease his way through the Wimbledon draw.
The world No 1 reached his 50th Grand Slam quarter-final with a straight-sets victory over Cristian Garin on Centre Court.
The world number one made it 18 consecutive major match wins as he chases a third title of the year and 12 consecutive sets taken at the All England Club in 2021 with a 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 success.
#Wimbledon quarter-finalist for a 12th time…
Defending champion @DjokerNole defeats Cristian Garin 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 to reach the final eight pic.twitter.com/skJOrqvjx3
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 5, 2021
Should he win, he would tie Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s record of 20 major titles and would stay on track to be the first man in the Open era to complete a calendar Grand Slam.
“I feel privileged and honoured, of course very happy to be in this position to make history of the sport,” said the 34-year-old, who is considered by many to be the greatest male player of all time.
“At the same time, I need to go about my everyday routines and everyday life on the tour pretty much the same way that I feel has reaped a lot of success for me.
“If I start giving away my attention and energy to these speculations and discussions and debates, I feel like it’s going to derail me from what I feel is the priority at this moment for me, which is to take it step by step, day by day, stick to stuff that makes me feel good, that makes me feel comfortable, confident, that makes me prepare the best that I possibly can be prepared for the final stages of Grand Slams.
“It’s not a secret that I am trying to win as many slams as possible. I went for historic number one (most weeks spent at number one). I managed to achieve that milestone. They are a motivating factor but they are not consuming my everyday life.”
Had Djokovic been able to pick an opponent for a last-16 clash at Wimbledon, he could have done a lot worse than Chilean Garin who, despite being seeded 17th, is a clay-court specialist and had never won a match at SW19 prior to this year.
He had benefited from a kind draw to make it this far and he got a taste of the afternoon he was in for as Djokovic won the first eight points of the match and raced through the opening set.
Garin dug in well at the start of the second, holding his own in rallies a lot better and forcing Djokovic into a few uncomfortable moments.
Play was stopped in the fifth game as rain began to fall but it was so brief the players had barely sat down before they were back out on court.
5️⃣0️⃣ Grand Slam quarter-finals. Not too bad, @DjokerNole 😉
🎥: @Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/yBhznC3Wur
— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 5, 2021
Djokovic began to ramp up the pressure and, after failing to take five break points through the first seven games of the set, he found a way through to make it 5-4 and did not look back.
“I am happy particularly with the match today,” said the Serbian, who next faces Hungarian Marton Fucsovics.
“After the third round, which was kind of up and down for me, today was a very solid performance from the first to last point. I was mentally present. I was serving much better, using the court well.
“Cristian played for his first time on Centre Court. You could see he was nervous, making a lot of unforced errors at the beginning of the match, which gave me an opportunity to win comfortably the first set, which I have used.”
Follow us on Twitter @T365Official and like our Facebook page.
Latest
-
Wimbledon
Cameron Norrie breaks new ground at home Grand Slam
Cameron Norrie defeated Steve Johnson 6-4 6-1 6-0 to make the last 16 at a grand slam for the first time.
-
Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic not concerned about Covid-19 risk
Novak Djokovic is not worried about Covid-19.
-
Wimbledon
Mats Wilander backs Brit to make last eight at SW19
Heather Watson made a statement in her third round win.
-
Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic set for fourth round clash with breakout grass prospect
Van Rijthoven’s rapid rise this summer continued, as he beat Nikoloz Basilashvili to the sound of ‘come on Tim’ at Wimbledon.
-
Wimbledon
Heather Watson banishes the ghost of her epic third round loss to Serena Williams
Watson is through to the fourth round of a grand slam for the first time in his career.
-
Wimbledon
How much John McEnroe earns from BBC commentary gig
John McEnroe walks away with a tidy sum for a fortnight of work.
-
Wimbledon
Ons Jabeur isn’t paid by the hour as she breezes into last 16
The world number two extended her winning streak on grass this summer to eight matches.
-
Tennis News
Heather Watson and Cameron Norrie flying the flag for Britain today at Wimbledon
Only four Brits remain.
-
Tennis News
Carlos Alcaraz finding his feet at SW19 to threaten Novak Djokovic and Rafa Nadal
He’s becoming a bigger danger to the ‘more experienced.’
-
Wimbledon
Nick Kyrgios punished for spitting at fan in Wimbledon crowd
Bad boy Kyrgios handed yet another fine.