Andrey Rublev pulled through in a tough 5-set encounter against Kazakhstan’s Alexander Bublik, setting up a nightmare quarterfinal encounter against Wimbledon’s defending men’s champion, Novak Djokovic. This is Rublev’s first appearance in the quarters of Wimbledon, and he will be greeted by the 7-time champion on Centre Court. (Wimbledon 2023 Day 9 Live Updates)
It’s a tough draw for Rublev, who also had the misfortune of running into Djokovic in the Australian Open quarterfinals. That was a comfortable victory for the Serb, who holds a 3-1 head-to-head advantage over his younger opponent.
This is the third slam in a row Rublev has been drawn into Djokovic’s quarter, preventing the Russian from being able to make a maiden semifinal appearance at a grand slam. That is the aim for the big-hitting Rublev, who has reached seven quarterfinals but never beyond in his grand slam career.
While Djokovic will be a tough challenge and the favourite to go through, Rublev played down the significance of his opponent’s record on the grass. Djokovic hasn’t lost on Centre Court in a decade, but Rublev said that wouldn’t be something that he thought about in his preparation.
“To be honest, I’m not really thinking about it because this is his history. He knows that he’s one of the best players, especially at this place, at this court. Why I need to think about his achievement?” said the Russian in his press conference.
“He’s one of the best. He didn’t really lose this year, especially in Slams. All the Slams that he played, he won.” Djokovic is making another bid at a calendar year grand slam, having wrapped up the Australian Open and the French Open. He looks in good touch on the grass as well, fairly comfortably dispatching Hubert Hurkacz in their round of 16 encounter.
While Rublev has an enormously powerful game, it is the sort of matchup Djokovic will enjoy with his ability to defend every part of the court and counterpunch. Even against someone with the heavy groundstrokes of Rublev, the Serb has the ability to use the pace against his opponent.
“That’s the toughest thing,” continued Rublev. “You have the guy who returns almost everything with amazing legs. You have to play really, really great match,” Rublev said. Djokovic is bidding for a fifth consecutive Wimbledon title, unbeaten at the tournament since he withdrew against Tomas Berdych in 2017.
Djokovic has handled powerful players like Matteo Berrettini and Nick Kyrgios in previous tournaments, and Rublev isn’t particularly comfortable on grass. The Russian will require to fire on all cylinders and be inch-perfect in his approach to the game if he wants to avoid the bruising he got from Djokovic in Melbourne, a straight sets victory which ended 6-1, 6-2, 6-4.
