No limits, says Novak Djokovic as he reaches 800 wins milestone
- by Emily Walters
- in Sport
- — Jun 25, 2018
Novak Djokovic swept into the Queen's Club quarter-finals and recorded his 799th career win with a 6-4, 6-1 demolition of Grigor Dimitrov on Thursday.
The world No. 22 never looked back after dropping serve in the third game, breaking to avoid a first-set tie-break and then reeling off five games in a row in the second as he continues to build ominous momentum in the run-up to Wimbledon.
If Djokovic is successful in his next match, the Serb will become only the 10th man in the Open era to join the 800-win club.
The Croatian, who last won the title in 2012, controlled the early exchanges from the baseline but missed six break point chances in the opening set, allowing Djokovic to battle back. Hopefully I can have many more years, because I truly enjoy playing this sport.
"Obviously disappointed not to be able to win it, because this was, you know, a big occasion for me playing finals against Cilic, who is obviously one of the best players in the world", three-times Wimbledon champion Djokovic said.
Marin Cilic after beating Novak Djokovic in the final at the Queen's Club in London on Sunday. "I'm really pleased with the way I have played throughout the whole week". He was serving more than 30 aces in a match and both of those matches were in two sets.
More news: Switzerland hero Xherdan Shaqiri lets political gesture speak for itselfThe 12-time Grand Slam champion recovered from a break down in the first but after taking a one-set lead he assumed complete control, losing just one more game on his way to a 7-6 6-1 win.
"It was a special win for me because past year I had a match point and didn't convert it", Cilic said. "You know, if those things go like that every single time, that would be great". "I have to keep my expectation very low, considering my results in the last 12 months".
An embarrassing French Open quarter-final defeat against Italian journeyman Marco Cecchinato extended his wretched run in 2018.
"The last couple of weeks, I feel pretty untouchable on serve". Cilic produced the knockout blow in the final set with a brilliant victor on the run to break in the eighth game, earning a thumbs up from Djokovic that effectively signalled his surrender.
But crucially, Cilic saved a match point at 4-5 in the second set, with a thunderous service victor setting the stage for a thrilling tie-break.