Defending champion Novak Djokovic romped to victory against Miomir Kecmanovic at the grass-court major, reaching the fourth round at Wimbledon on Friday. The Serbian, the No 1 seed, cruised to a high-class 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 third-round win against countryman Kecmanovic.
Djokovic, who dropped just seven games in defeating Thanasi Kokkinakis in the second round, matched that number with another sublime all-around display to overwhelm his opponent on Centre Court, breaking the Kecmanovic serve six times on the way to a one-hour, 52-minute victory.
It was Djokovic's 24th consecutive win on grass, drawing him level with Australian great Rod Laver in third place on the Open Era list for longest tour-level winning streaks on the surface.
Sit back and enjoy...@DjokerNole playing cat and mouse with his compatriot#Wimbledon | #CentreCourt100 pic.twitter.com/GBaBZvmnu0
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2022
The 35-year-old Djokovic, going for his 21st Grand Slam title, dominated the all-Serbian match and brushed aside his 22-year-old Davis Cup teammate for a comfortable win.
The six-time champion next faces another man in red-hot form on the grass in Tim van Rijthoven. The Dutch wildcard dispatched Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 earlier on Friday to ease into the fourth round on his Grand Slam main draw debut.
35 wins in a row on Centre Court for @DjokerNole #Wimbledon | #CentreCourt100 pic.twitter.com/BRbTp2KyBo
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 1, 2022
"I think I've been playing better and better as the tournament progresses," said Djokovic in his on-court interview.
"That's obviously something that you always wish for as a player, that every match that you play you raise the level of tennis up a notch at least, and I think that is what is happening at the moment," the Serbian was quoted as saying in a report on the ATP website.
"I know I can always do better. I always expect the highest from myself, but I think so far, so good, and looking forward to the"next challenge."