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Location: All England Club Appointment: June 28-July 11 |
Blanket: Live on BBC TV, radio and online with extensive coverage on BBC iPlayer, Red Button, Smart TVs and the mobile app. All the details here |
Novak Djokovic won his sixth Wimbledon title to tie Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s record of 20 Grand Slam wins after battling to beat Italy’s Matteo Berrettini.
The 34-year-old Serb won 6-7 (4-7) 6-4 6-4 6-3 in front of a passionate and noisy crowd of 15,000 on center court.
Seventh-seeded Berrettini, 25, received strong support but was unable to maintain his advantage in his first major final.
The number one seed Djokovic has now won all three men’s Grand Slam titles in 2021.
“Winning Wimbledon was always my biggest dream as a kid,” said the world number one, who only lost a set for the second time in the SW19 fortnight.
“A seven year old boy in Serbia building a Wimbledon trophy out of improvised materials and standing here with a real sixth trophy is amazing. It’s amazing.”
Having already won the Australian Open and the French Open, Djokovic is the fifth man in history – and only the second in the Open era after Rod Laver in 1969 – to win the first three major tournaments of the season.
And with Djokovic retaining his crown at the All England Club, he has gone one step further to become the second player to achieve a Golden Slam.
Only Germany’s Steffi Graf in 1988 has already won all four majors and the Olympics in a calendar year.
Berrettini saved two match points at 5-3 in the fourth set with a controlled volley and a 101 mph forehand down the line. But the Italian couldn’t fight the third as he sliced a backhand into the net.
Djokovic fell prone with outstretched arms after sealing a relentless victory, while Berrettini’s contrasting emotions on the opposite baseline – doubling over with his hands on his knees – exemplified the effort he had. deployed in defeat.
After being cheered by an enthusiastic center court crowd, Djokovic climbed to his support team to celebrate before finding a few seconds left to take a selfie with a young fan.
More soon.
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