On Monday night The Odyssey, Christopher Nolan’s three-hour epic about one man’s heroic quest, had its world premiere in London. And 24 hours later at Wimbledon, 15,000 fans on Centre Court witnessed a tennis equivalent. A rugged hero: Novak Djokovic. A mighty quest: the hunt for a record-breaking 25th grand slam title. There was an injury scare. Multiple shifts in momentum. And numerous times where the Centre Court crowd stood up and started punching the air at what they were watching.
It amounted to pure box office. And after five hours and 15 minutes of extraordinary tennis, it was Djokovic who was again left standing after defeating Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4).
Asked how he was able to pull it out of the fire, in a match that finished just six minutes before the 11pm curfew, Djokovic said: “With my racket and a lot of heart. Towards the end it was anyone’s match. But these are still the moments I still play tennis for.
“I wish it was the final so I didn’t have to worry about how the body will feel tomorrow but I am happy. I was telling the kids to go to sleep after the fourth set but I am glad they didn’t listen. Because honestly it was one of the best matches I have been involved in on this court in my career.”
The first set alone took 79 minutes, which gave an indication of what was to come. Initially it was all about might and muscle, but at 4-4 Djokovic suddenly had a sharp moment of alarm after skidding to play a regulation backhand. There was a stop, a grimace, and then a squat down in apparent pain. The trainer was called. The Centre Court crowd held its collective breath. Djokovic, though, was quickly moving again – on the court and then on the scoreboard.
It took a lengthy tie-break for Djokovic to establish the early supremacy, however, with the Serb winning it 12-10 after Auger‑Aliassime hooked a wild forehand volley wide.
Both players’ serve continued to dominate until at 3-4, Djokovic’s mind went on walkabout and he was broken for the first time after a double fault. All Auger-Aliassime needed to do was hold serve at 5-3 up to level. But that proved easier said than done as Djokovic quickly got to break point.
However, one of the points of these Championships then played out. After some initial sparring, Auger‑Aliassime sent Djokovic wide and followed it up with a drop shot. Incredibly, Djokovic didn’t just reach it, he also hit an impeccable flick back over his opponent. Auger‑Aliassime was able to scramble back, fire a desperate lob, and then meet Djokovic’s smash with a double‑handed backhand winner from five metres behind the baseline. No wonder Centre Court erupted.
Two points later, it was one-set all and Wimbledon was anticipating a late‑night classic. How else to explain why, at 7.40pm, it was decided to put the roof up with 90 minutes of natural light left?
Whatever the reasoning, it certainly helped Djokovic. He began to hit the ball harder and with more depth. And while he missed three break points in Auger-Aliassame’s first service game of the third set – which lasted 15 minutes and contained 20 points – he soon had the break that was enough to win him the third set.
And when Djokovic broke again early in the fourth, it seemed that Auger-Aliassime, the younger man by 15 years, was done. How little we knew, as he broke straight back.
Djokovic, though, seemed to be enjoying the struggle. After one Auger-Aliassime drop shot, he shook his head in disbelief – but he also could not stop himself from smiling even after the Canadian wrapped up the fourth set in a tie-break.
As the players continued to trade blows, Centre Court was entranced by a match for the ages. At 10.18pm the crowd stood up to applaud both players, with Djokovic 4-3 ahead. The Serb’s response? A stunning backhand winner. Auger-Aliassime’s reply? A forehand winner on the next point. It was that sort of match.
Play continued to go on serve, Djokovic leading, his opponent chasing. But when it came to the final‑set tie-break, Djokovic somehow was able to step up again.
His powers of defence, especially after five hours, were extraordinary as he fended off several piledrivers to move to 9-4 and then take the match. Djokovic has now reached a record 15 Wimbledon semi-finals – including eight in a row, another record.
But while the looming figure of Jannik Sinner awaits, Djokovic is determined his Homeric journey will extend beyond Friday.
“I’m going to look at all the numbers when I finish my career,” he said. “But right now it is all business.” And you better believe it.
