Tim Henman finds a word to describe Novak Djokovic’s Wimbledon masterclass
Novak Djokovic sent out an ominous message of intent to the tennis world with a stunning performance to dismiss Stefanos Tsitsipas on the Centre Court and Wimbledon, with former British No 1 Tim Henman describing the Serbian legend as ‘phenomenal’.
Djokovic has played a limited schedule over the course of 2026, but he rolled back the years to beat his old rival Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 with a performance that was described by the BBC commentators as ‘vintage’.
For the seven-time Wimbledon champion to be continuing to produce performances of this quality at the age of 39 is quite remarkable and on a day when Jannik Sinner looked below his best once again, Djokovic is emerging as a strong contender to challenge him for the Wimbledon title.
“That was absolutely phenomenal from Novak Djokovic,” declared four-time Wimbledon semi-finalist Tim Henman on the BBC.
“I’ve watched him for so many years and still he goes out and produces performances like that. It was so clean, there were so few unforced errors. His serving was on point and his percentages were high.
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“When they got into baseline exchanges, his movement was incredible in and out of the corners.
“Stefanos Tsitsipas isn’t in the best form or in the best place in his career, but the way Djokovic just absolutely dismantled him was incredibly impressive.”
Djokovic will now face big-serving Frenchman Arthur Rinderknech and he suggested his form is building as he looks to book his place in the second week once again.
“I like the terminology ‘vintage’, it is nice because it brings back the best days,” said Djokovic when he was told about the word used to describe his performance.
“Obviously you feel very happy, satisfied and joyful on the court when you are playing this way. Once I got that momentum going two sets to love up, that game when I went 5-2 up was one of the best return games I’ve played in a while.
“I just went for my shots, I was obviously a bit more relaxed, and I felt a bit less tension in my head in terms of overthinking how to anticipate his serve. His serve was really strong and precise for a set and a half, so one break of serve was enough in the first two sets.
“After that, I started to read his serve a bit better and he missed quite a few first serves in the third set, which gave me a look in on the second serve.
“It was nice to be playing another indoor Wimbledon match, I guess. I’m looking forward to playing an outdoor game, hopefully, in the next round.”
“I’m feeling great. I’ve said this so many times before that I try not to take these moments for granted when playing on the Centre Court of Wimbledon.
“It was the childhood dream tournament, I’ve always said that and it has always stayed as that. I feel very privileged to be walking out on this court at age 30 plus. I don’t think it’s a cliche because I actually believe it is true, but age is just a number.”
Serena Williams was not able to defy the sands of time by winning on her Centre Court comeback, but Djokovic continues to defy all logic to remain a big contender for Grand Slam titles in his 40th year.
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