Djokovic completes decade of dominance on Centre Court, adds to his jaw-dropping Wimbledon numbers with Wawrinka win

It looks inevitable. With each points, with each set, and with each win, there seems no one better as Novak Djokovic, the defending champion for the last four years keeps adding to his jaw-dropping numbers at the Wimbledon. But the statistic that stood out on late Friday night at the SW19, following his win in a lopsided third-round match against familiar rival Stan Wawrinka was that the Serb completed a decade of dominance on one of the most iconic tennis courts, the Centre Court, etching his name atop in the 101-year history of the venue. (Wimbledon 2023 Day 6 Live Updates)

With a 6-3, 6-1, 7-6 (5) against the three-time Grand Slam winner, Djokovic booked his spot in the second week of Wimbledon for the 15th time his career. But the win saw Djokovic complete a decade since he last lost in his beloved Centre Court. Since his defeat to Andy Murray on July 7 of 2013, which was a summit clash, the Serb has won 42 matches in a row, which remains the most by any player since Centre Court opened in 1922. The next-best streak belongs to eight-time Wimbledon winner Roger Federer and Helen Wills Moody, who had both won 32 matches in a row on Centre Court. Federer’s streak was between 2003 and 2008 and Wills Moody’s was from 1927 to 1938.

The win was extended his streak of victories at Grand Slam to 24, since his loss to Rafael Nadal at the quarterfinal at French Open last year. It was also his 31st straight win at Wimbledon, tying to the legendary Pete Sampras, who had recorded that streak between 1997 and 2001. Only Björn Borg (41, between 1976 and 1981) and Roger Federer (40, between 2003 and 2008) have won more consecutive men’s singles matches in Wimbledon in Open Era.

In the round of 16, the defending champion will be playing 17th seed Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated 14th seed Lorenzo Musetti 7-6(4), 6-4, 6-4 earlier on Day 5 of 2023 Wimbledon. This will be their sixth meeting on ATP tour and the 36-year-old never lost to the Polish. They had previously faced each other in 2019 Wimbledon in third round where Djokovic won in four sets.