London: Djokovic sets Wimbledon match wins record | JQJO

LONDON, July 5 (Reuters) - Novak Djokovic added another milestone to his Wimbledon legacy on Sunday, defeating Russian qualifier Roman Safiullin 7-6(6) 6-3 3-6 6-3 to reach the quarter-finals and claim a record 106th match victory at the All England Club, moving clear of retired rival Roger Federer on the men’s all-time wins list at the grasscourt Grand Slam. The 39-year-old seventh seed is now also targeting an eighth Wimbledon title to equal Federer’s record, as well as a standalone 25th Grand Slam singles crown, after navigating another demanding four-set contest on Centre Court.

Djokovic had to recover from an uneven start and periods of uncharacteristic errors, twice dropping serve and saving two set points at 2-5 down before edging a fiercely contested first-set tiebreak in hot, windy conditions. World number 132 Safiullin, returning from months out with a hip injury, continued to pressure the Serb and extended the match by snatching the third set, but his challenge faded after a costly backhand error in the second set and Djokovic’s improved serving in the fourth. Mixing up his tactics with serve-and-volley play and relying on precise first serves at key moments, Djokovic closed out the win to set up a last-eight meeting with either third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime or Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, later describing his first week as a case of having to “survive to thrive.”