Boris Becker makes Novak Djokovic retirement prediction as he hunts Wimbledon record
Boris Becker is confident that this Wimbledon will not be Novak Djokovic’s last as the Serbian hunts another piece of history at the All England Club.
Djokovic punched his ticket into the fourth round at Wimbledon on Friday after a hard-fought contest against Arthur Rinderknech.
The former World No1 raced into a two-set lead, before Rinderknech battled back impressively on Centre Court.
The big-serving Frenchman dominated the third set, winning 6-1 in just over half an hour, before taking Djokovic all the way to a tie-break in the fourth set.
But Djokovic dug deep to win that fourth-set tie-break and secure a well-earned victory in just over four hours.
The 39-year-old now faces qualifier Roman Safiullin in the fourth round as he bids to win a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam and join his great rival Roger Federer on eight Wimbledon titles.
A mouthwatering semi-final clash against Jannik Sinner could await in the final four, but Becker believes Djokovic still has all the capabilities to roll back the years and triumph again at SW19.
Writing in The Telegraph, Becker, who worked with Djokovic between 2013 and 2016, said: ‘I wouldn’t rule it out [Djokovic winning this year]. Even if he has lost half a step since his peak years as an athlete, this tournament is all about the mind.
‘Grass-court tennis tests your mental strength and your temperament like no other surface. On clay, if you miss a break point, you don’t need to worry too much: there will be another one along in a minute. But on grass, you might only get one chance per set.
‘This sorts the men from the boys. And Novak isn’t just a grown up; he is the elder statesman of the game.
‘At 39, he will not be the fastest or the strongest player in the draw anymore. But Wimbledon favours the smartest players ahead of the finest physical specimens.’
Regardless of what happens over the next week, Djokovic will likely have to field questions over his tennis future following the end of Wimbledon.
The tennis legend turned 39 less than two months ago and already plays a curtailed regular season schedule to keep himself fresh for the Grand Slams.
But Becker believes Djokovic still has at least two more visits to Wimbledon left in his illustrious career, and suspects the Serbian may target the 2028 Olympic Games as his swansong.
‘As for how long he will carry on, my money is on the 2028 Olympics in LA,’ Becker added.
‘The only problem is that the regular tour has come to bore him. If you’ve won 24 majors, what’s your motivation for fitting in another Miami Open?
‘As a result, he is sometimes in danger of not playing enough. Four matches between Melbourne and Paris this year was on the light side, even for such a great champion.
‘The danger is that, because Novak has so many other interests, sometimes they take him away a little bit from tennis. He will really need to discipline himself to make it to LA ’28.
‘But I’m hoping – for the sport’s sake – that he gets there.’
Speaking on court after his second-round win over Stefanos Tsitsipas, Djokovic insisted he was keen not to take any moment for granted during the final chapter of his career.
‘I’m feeling great,’ he said. ‘I’ve said this so many times before that I try not to take these moments for granted when playing on the Centre Court of Wimbledon.
‘It was the childhood dream tournament, I’ve always said that and it has always stayed as that. I feel very privileged to be walking out on this court at age 30 plus.
‘I don’t think it’s a cliche because I actually believe it is true, but age is just a number.’
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Boris Becker makes Novak Djokovic retirement prediction as he hunts Wimbledon record
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