Novak Djokovic has a real problem that is getting so bad it could cost him the Wimbledon title

Novak Djokovic is getting closer and closer to that elusive 25th Grand Slam title as he progresses through the rounds at this year’s Wimbledon, but he can count himself lucky he is still in the competition.

Djokovic has been solid at this year’s Wimbledon, dropping just three sets in matches against Wu Yibing, Stefanos Tsitsipas, Arthur Rinderknech, and Roman Safiullin.

However, the star’s temper nearly got the best of him against Safiullin as the Russian qualifier began to grow into the match on Centre Court.

At one point, Djokovic blew over and hurled a ball into backstop, where there was, thankfully, nobody on the receiving end of the strike.

If he had hit somebody, Djokovic would have certainly been disqualified from the match, which would not be a new occurence for the 24-time Grand Slam champion.

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Djokovic was disqualified from the 2020 US Open for hitting a ball into a line judge in his fourth round match against Roberto Bautista Agut.

While that came nearly six years ago, Djokovic came mightily close to the same thing happening to him at this year’s Australian Open.

In his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp, Djokovic fired a ball that narrowly missed a ballkid at the Melbourne tournament.

That means two of his three Grand Slams this year has seen Djokovic’s anger nearly cost him a chance to make tennis history.

This is something that should just absolutely not be happening for a player that is as experienced as Djokovic, who celebrated his 39th birthday a few months ago.

Andy Roddick, too, was worried about Djokovic getting disqualified in his latest match at SW19.

Speaking on Served, Roddick said: “Novak was scratchy, played well in the second set. In the third set. He got, like, chippy. Everything seemed, like, settled, and he kind of got into it. He said in his post-match, like, the tantrums. I probably went overboard.

“He got broken and Safiullin kind of buzzed the tower on one, but it was a clean play; he wasn’t trying to, like, do anything to his own detriment there, but, like, buzzed the tower. I don’t think Novak was that upset about that.

“I think he was more upset about maybe hitting an average volley. But fired the ball across the court to the backstop, like, all the way through. I mean, there weren’t any ball kids around. It was the back again, but, like, I had visions of that US Open when he fired one against the backstop.

“And it was maybe we had a weird angle in the bunker, but maybe two feet, and then it would have brought in the camera guys also that are above the court.

“I mean, it was just… For a minute, I was like, it came off his racket, and I was like, oh, gosh. Like, this call is about to change a lot. This tournament just, like, I mean, it’s hard to make sense out of it.”

Djokovic has a genuine chance of winning Wimbledon this year and it could be his final opportunity to claim that 25th major. It would be ridiculous to let his emotions get in the way of something so special.