LONDON — After wrapping up a straight-set win on Centre Courtroom, Novak Djokovic bumped into one other 38-year-old within the Wimbledon locker room.
Gael Monfils, who was born about eight months earlier than Djokovic and is the one participant within the males’s draw who’s older, was ready for the beginning of his second-round match.
“He sort of smiled at me and stated, ‘Good day within the workplace,’” Djokovic recounted. “At this age, he stated, we want these varieties of days.”
Thursday was definitely a great day for the outdated guard at Wimbledon.
At a time when the brand new technology — led by Carlos Alcaraz, 22, and Jannik Sinner, 23 — is beginning to take over, there can be six males within the third spherical who’re 33 or older. (Monfils’ match towards Marton Fucsovics, 33, was suspended due to darkness Thursday and can be accomplished Friday).
On Thursday, Djokovic beat 35-year-old Dan Evans; the 34-year-old Gregor Dimitrov ousted Corentin Moutet; 35-year-old Jan-Lennard Struff completed off a win over Felix Auger-Aliassime in a match that had been suspended on Wednesday; and 36-year-old Marin Cilic beat British No. 4 seed Jack Draper, who’s 23. The 37-year-old Adrian Mannarino superior Wednesday.
And, as Struff identified, these turn-back-the-clock performances got here after yet one more 38-year-old, Fabio Fognini, pushed two-time defending champion Alcaraz to 5 units within the first spherical.
“It’s superb,” stated Struff, who faces Alcaraz on Centre Courtroom on Friday. “You see loads of older gamers enjoying good tennis. In order that motivates me, as properly, to maintain going.”
Cilic, the 2014 U.S. Open champion and twice a significant runner-up elsewhere, is coming again to top-level tennis after having two knee operations after which enjoying in lower-level Challenger Tour occasions this yr to spice up his rating. He needed to make it by way of qualifying rounds simply to get into the bracket on the French Open, the place he misplaced within the first spherical.
He is making his first Wimbledon look since 2021, and is happy see some gamers his personal age nonetheless round.
“It’s nice to see them enjoying, persevering with to play properly,” Cilic stated, “and utilizing this expertise to play nice in Grand Slams.”
The older guys, it appears, usually stick collectively behind the scenes.
“All of us, now we have super respect for one another,” Dimitrov stated. “We do these items, little gather-ups after we’re having lunch, and even within the locker rooms. The funniest factor is, it takes us much more time to organize. Typically it’s a must to put together an hour and a half for a 30-minute hit.”
Being one of many veterans on tour additionally makes it simpler to understand life as a tennis participant, Dimitrov stated. However he acknowledged that another issues had been higher when he was youthful.
“Would I wish to have issues … somewhat bit simpler on the physique? Sure,” he stated. “However at this level, having the ability to compete towards the blokes, profitable matches nonetheless, giving a tough time to the perfect gamers — that’s one motive to maintain on enjoying.”
