Kokkinakis was ousted in three sets by Djokovic.
Thanasi Kokkinakis says he is hoping Novak Djokovic continues with dominant performances in the rest of Wimbledon as that way he will probably feel better about his level. Kokkinakis, 26, exited Wimbledon in the second round after Djokovic handed him a 6-1 6-4 6-2 loss.
Djokovic was pretty much dominant throughout the entire match as Kokkinakis never really stood a chance. Djokovic converted 5-of-13 of his break points and saved the lone break point he faced. After the match, Kokkinakis was asked whether he sees anyone stopping Djokovic from winning a fourth consecutive Wimbledon title.
“Hopefully not, if he plays like that. Because if someone beats him when he’s playing like that it means I’m even further off than I thought,” Kokkinakis answered, per Ben Rothenberg.
Funny phrasing by Kokkinakis, who was awed by Djokovic today:
Q.
Do you see anyone stopping him?
THANASI KOKKINAKIS: Hopefully not, if he plays like that. Because if someone beats him when he’s playing like that it means I’m even further off than I thought…#Wimbledon — Ben Rothenberg (@BenRothenberg) June 29, 2022
Kokkinakis beaten by Djokovic in straight sets
“I’m very happy with my performance today,” Djokovic said after beating Kokkinakis.
“I thought I started off very well, very solid from the back of the court, made him work for every point that I managed to get his serve back in play. I tried to work him around the court, bring a lot of variety in the game.
It was not easy to serve because of the wind, it was very swirly today on the court, so tough to toss the ball. But I think from my side overall, a really high-quality performance and I’m very pleased”. Even though Kokkinakis lost, his Wimbledon campaign still isn’t over.
Now, Kokkinakis will focus on the doubles partner, where he is set to play with his close friend Nick Kyrgios. In the doubles first round, Kokkinakis and Kyrgios face Aljaz Bedene and Sonwoo Kwon. Earlier this year, Kokkinakis and Kyrgios became Grand Slam champions together after winning the Australian Open men’s doubles title.
Kokkinakis and Kyrgios can certainly play extremely together and it will be interesting to see if they can lift their second Grand Slam title of the year at Wimbledon.
