On Monday, three-time defending Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic opened Centre Court with a 6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Kwon Soon-woo. A visual look at how the Serbian’s bid for major No. 21 began:
Djokovic stepped into the sport’s grand cathedral, which celebrates 100 years in 2022, having won five of the past seven event titles.
After beginning slowly in his first grass-court match of the year, the 20-time major winner reeled off five straight games to claim the opening set.
Regrouping, Kwon broke the top seed for 3-1 after Djokovic sprayed three successive unforced errors. And this time, there was no conceding the break advantage as the South Korean returned the favor with his own 6-3 set.
The contest had dives...
Baseline slips...
And missed opportunities. Kwon had a break point at 2-2 in the third set and three more at 1-0 in the fourth set.
Djokovic completed his day with 15 aces and an 86 percent success rate on his first serve to advance after 2 hours and 27 minutes.
Son Stefan was in the stands to see his dad make history as the first player to win at least 80 matches at all four majors.
The six-time champion, who has 85 wins at Roland Garros, 82 at the Australian Open, and 81 at the US Open, next faces Thanasi Kokinnakis.