Wimbledon: John McEnroe makes Novak Djokovic ‘bluffing’ injury comment – ‘I’ve seen this before’
John McEnroe marvelled at Novak Djokovic’s will to win in his four-set opening round victory at the 2026 Wimbledon Championships.
Djokovic prevailed 6-4, 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 against world No 102 Wu Yibing in a tough first round encounter on Centre Court on Monday evening.
The 39-year-old tennis legend, who is chasing a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title, was clearly feeling the physical effects of the battle as the match wore on.
In the fourth set, Djokovic’s movement looked laboured at times between points, and he was frequently seen stretching and hitting his legs.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion had to dig deep to get over the finish line as he saved all six of the break points he faced in the fourth set.
In his on-court interview, Djokovic said: “If felt really challenging for me today. I think Wu deserves a round of applause for his incredible performance.
“I’m feeling happy, but not the freshest, I guess. It didn’t feel like the first round, to be honest.”
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The legendary Serbian added: “I was lucky that he missed that overhead, really, on break point [at 4-4 in the fourth set]. I probably should have lost that fourth set. He had many break points.
“Thankfully I have an experience of playing in the last 20 years on this court that can help me a little bit manage the situation.
“But yeah, it would be nice to combine an experience with a new, young, fresh body. That would be really a winning formula (smiles).”
McEnroe, who was commentating on the match for the BBC, hailed Djokovic for continuing to defy Father Time.
“Father Time undefeated,” McEnroe said during the seventh game of the fourth set. “He’s fought it hard and very successfully for a long, long time. A lot longer than you thought his expiration date would be, that’s for sure.”
During the changeover with Djokovic trailing 3-4 in the fourth, McEnroe questioned if the No 7 seed was “bluffing” when discussing the signs that he was struggling physically.
“He (Wu) picks up on it (Djokovic showing signs of discomfort), he sees it,” assessed the seven-time major singles champion.
“Is he bluffing? How bad is it? I’ve seen this movie before. I mean, this isn’t something that’s unprecedented.”
After Djokovic broke Wu to take a 5-4 lead, McEnroe was full of praise for his mentality.
“You gotta love what Djokovic does — this guy is amazing,” said the American.
“You love him or hate him, you gotta respect him, there’s no question about it. This guy brings fire, he brings intensity, he brings so much desire. He brings love to the sport.
“I’ve seen him hundreds — five hundred times — and you still look and go, ‘wow, this guy still wants it this bad’.”
Djokovic will face world No 87 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round at Wimbledon on Wednesday.
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