Novak Djokovic added another landmark to his glittering career on Sunday, surpassing Roger Federer for the most men’s singles victories at Wimbledon as he battled past Roman Safiullin to reach the quarter-finals.
The seven-time champion overcame a stern challenge from the spirited qualifier, winning 7-6(6), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 on Centre Court to book a ninth successive Wimbledon quarter-final and the 17th of his career at the All England Club.
The victory was Djokovic’s 106th men’s singles win at Wimbledon, moving him ahead of Federer atop the all-time list. Only Martina Navratilova, with 120 singles victories, has won more singles matches at Wimbledon than the Serbian.
Despite extending his remarkable record, Djokovic admitted he was pushed hard by Safiullin, who matched him from the baseline for long spells and forced the 39-year-old to adapt his game.
“Another hard-fought win. Roman started very well, very aggressively. I didn’t feel so comfortable from the back of the court. I knew it was going to be a challenge staying in the rallies with him. He’s a very solid player… He should be proud of the performance today,” Djokovic said, as quoted by the ATP Tour.
The Serbian revealed he deliberately altered his tactics to avoid extended exchanges.
“I don’t get to feel inferior from the back of the court with too many players. Today was one of those days where I didn’t want to stay in the rally for too long, so I mixed things up. In some moments, it worked. In some moments, it didn’t. In the end, the accuracy and precision with the first serve was what got me out of trouble,” he added.
Djokovic’s victory keeps alive his pursuit of an eighth Wimbledon title and a record-extending 25th Grand Slam crown.
Standing between him and a potential semi-final showdown with World No. 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner is a quarter-final against either third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime or 22nd seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Sinner had ended Djokovic’s title hopes at Wimbledon in last year’s semi-finals.