Novak Djokovic sends worrying message ahead of Jannik Sinner Wimbledon clash: ‘I have no…’

Novak Djokovic is through to another Wimbledon semifinal, but the road there has taken a lot out of him. The Serbian star needed five hours and 15 minutes to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime in a dramatic quarterfinal on Wednesday.

By the time the match ended, Djokovic looked physically drained and admitted he had very little energy left.

That is not the position he would have wanted before taking on world No. 1 Jannik Sinner. While reaching the last four is a major achievement, the long battle, multiple tiebreaks, and a demanding tournament run have left questions about how fresh Djokovic will be when he steps onto Centre Court for one of the biggest matches of the championship.

Novak Djokovic admits exhaustion after marathon win over Felix Auger-Aliassime

Djokovic survived a huge test against Felix Auger-Aliassime, winning 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) in one of the longest matches of this year’s Wimbledon.The contest stretched deep into the evening and finished only minutes before the All England Club’s 11 p.m. curfew. Along the way, there was a medical timeout, a 20-minute roof closure delay, and even a tense exchange between Djokovic and the tournament supervisor during the interruption.

After finally sealing victory, Djokovic made it clear how much the match had taken from him. During his on-court interview, he smiled but admitted he was running on empty.“Let’s keep it short because I have no energy left, my friend,” Djokovic said before the final question.The 39-year-old carried the same mood into his post-match press conference. He was not frustrated or upset, but it was obvious that the physical effort of the match had left him exhausted.Even so, there are positives for Djokovic. He remains unbeaten on grass this season and has now reached another Wimbledon semifinal. He also knocked out the tournament’s third seed to keep his title hopes alive.Still, the bigger concern is recovery. Grand Slam tournaments become more demanding with every round, and players rarely feel completely fresh by the final stages.

Jannik Sinner arrives fresher as Wimbledon semifinal approaches

Djokovic now faces a very different challenge in Jannik Sinner.

The Italian entered Wimbledon as the world No. 1 and has looked increasingly strong as the tournament has progressed. His opening-round match went to five sets, but since then he has not dropped a set.Djokovic’s path has been much tougher. Before the quarterfinal, he had recorded only one straight-sets victory, against Stefanos Tsitsipas in the second round. Three of his other matches went four sets, and the win over Auger-Aliassime added another five-set battle to his workload.

He has also played several tiebreaks during the tournament.That difference could become important when the semifinal begins on Friday, July 10.Despite the physical challenge, Djokovic is not dealing with any major injury concerns. That alone is encouraging at this stage of a Grand Slam. Few players know how to manage their bodies and recover between matches better than the 24-time Grand Slam champion.When reminded after the match that he had reached his 15th Wimbledon semifinal and 55th Grand Slam semifinal, Djokovic quickly shifted the focus back to the task ahead.“That’s great. But it’s just another semifinal for me. I’m going to look at all the numbers and everything when I finish my career. Right now it’s all business. I still have to recover. I’m still in the tournament, and I have a best player in the world in few days time. Thank you.”Those comments summed up Djokovic’s mindset. The records can wait. Right now, his attention is on recovery and finding enough energy to challenge the top-ranked player in the world for a place in the Wimbledon final.