Wimbledon 2022: 'Honour and pleasure to be back on Centre Court' - Novak Djokovic

Defending champion Novak Djokovic of Serbia was off to a competitive yet winning start in his 2022 Wimbledon title defence. On Monday, he was up against unseeded Soonwoo Kwon of South Korea, whom the former had to defeat in four sets 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4. Djokovic initially looked somewhat rusty since it happened to be his first game on the grass this season, having skipped the warm-up tournaments in the lead-up. With Kwon looking extremely good with his returns in the opening couple of sets, it seemed that the Serbian might be up for a fight, and the contest could go to five sets. However, the champion soon found his composure, especially from the third set.

Following the win, Djokovic expressed his delight and, most importantly, the pleasure of being back on the centre court. "I've said this before, but this court is extraordinary. For me, it has always been the court I dreamed of playing and winning [on], and all my childhood dreams came true here, so it's an honour and pleasure to be back on Centre Court," he said during the on-court interview after the match.

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"I am as dedicated as anyone out there. I am not one of the youngsters anymore, but the love for this sport still burns in me, and I try always to play my best tennis at the Grand Slams and deliver my best tennis on the best courts. Now that we're at 80 [wins at Wimbledon], let's get to 100," added Djokovic.

Djokovic will now be up against unseeded Thanasi Kokkinakis of Australia in the following round. The latter defeated fellow unseeded Kamil Majchrzak of Poland in straight sets 7-6(7-5), 6-2, 7-5. Although the former is undoubtedly the favourite here, given his struggles against Kwon, it would not be a surprise if this contest goes beyond three sets.

• Wimbledon
• Wimbledon 2022
• Novak Djokovic
• tennis
• sports