Novak Djokovic beats Soonwoo Kwon, claims his 80th Wimbledon win
Former world number one Novak Djokovic began his Wimbledon title defense with a victory over Soonwoo Kwon. Although Kwon took a set off Djokovic in a praiseworthy effort, Djokovic emerged as the winner (6-3, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4). He won his 80th Wimbledon match and extended his winning streak in the tournament to 22. He is vying for a record-equaling seventh Wimbledon title this time.
Djokovic won a total of 112 points and 31 winners in the match. He smashed as many as 15 aces, while Kwon registered seven. Djokovic won 86% points (54/63) on the first serve and 49% points (20/41) on the second. The Serbian won 50% of the break points. Kwon recoded five double faults, while Djokovic registered 29 unforced errors.
Djokovic won his third consecutive Wimbledon crown in 2021 and a sixth overall. Besides winning the tournament in 2018, 2019, and 2021, he was crowned champion in 2011, 2014, and 2015. He now has the third-most Wimbledon titles after Roger Federer (8), Pete Sampras (7), and William Renshaw (7). Djokovic could emulate Sampras and Renshaw this time.
Djokovic has won his 80th match at Wimbledon. Notably, the Serbian now has at least 80 wins at each of the four Grand Slams (Wimbledon: 80-10, Australian Open: 82-8, French Open: 85-16, US Open: 81-13). As per Opta, Djokovic has become the first man in the Open Era to claim 80+ main-draw wins across all four Grand Slams.
In 2021, Djokovic became the fourth man in the Open Era to win three consecutive Wimbledon titles after Federer, Bjorn Borg, and Sampras. The Serbian is now unbeaten in 22 matches in the grass-court tournament.
Djokovic has a win-loss record of 17-5 in 2022. Earlier this year, Djokovic clinched a record-extending 38th ATP Masters 1000 title in Rome. He was knocked out of the French Open by his long-time rival and eventual champion Rafael Nadal. The former will now face either Thanasi Kokkinakis or Kamil Majchrzak in the second round at Wimbledon.
