Wimbledon 2021 – Post Tournament Thoughts – Tennis Column #67

Wimbledon 2021 is over. After two years we saw the action on the grass again and it was as good as always. Let us go through the notes we wrote down during the tournament to remember these two exciting weeks we all enjoyed so much.

Djokovic

Novak Djokovic won and get his 20th Grand Slam title.

There are many notable things about this win.

This was his third Wimbledon win in a row (2018, 2019, 2021 – in 2020 Wimbledon tournament was canceled), sixth Wimbledon win overall, and twentieth Grand Slam triumph.

The number twenty puts him at the same level as Federer and Nadal. The only difference is that he needed the shortest time from the 1st to the 20th Grand Slam trophy.

On the way to the trophy, he lost just two sets. The very first set in the first round against Jack Draper and the first set in the final against Matteo Berrettini.

He won all three Grand Slams so far this season and is just US Open from winning the season Grand Slam. And that would be a huge thing. The last man to pull this was Rod Laver in 1969, the last woman was Steffi Graff in 1988.

We did not see season Grand Slam for so long that we start to think it is not possible.

He won four tournaments this season (Australian Open, ATP 250 Belgrade, French Open, Wimbledon) and that is the most of all players. The second-best player has just two tournament wins.

Djokovic played 38 matches this season and won 35 of them.

It is hard to write anything more about Djokovic and his tennis this season. The numbers above say it all. Thanks to Novak Djokovic we are witnessing something very special this season.

Last but not least, Novak Djokovic was our pre-season and also pre-tournament winner pick.

Berrettini, Shapovalov, Hurkacz, Auger-Alliasime

There is no need to be afraid of the future. When Federer and Nadal say good-bye there will be enough talent to move tennis further.

All four players mentioned in the subtitle have all the potential to be the next winners of Grand Slams. It just needs a bit more time.

Shapovalov said it after his semifinal battle with Djokovic very well. And now, when he and all others know the feeling of the play at Wimbledon centre court, there is no other way for them. Just to practice harder and do everything to return there again. Till the trophy will be theirs.

Matteo Berrettini played excellent finals. The match was entertaining and until the last ball, nothing was granted for Novak.

However, it needs more experience to beat Djokovic in the Wimbledon finals. I hardly remember when the last time player won in his first Grand Slam Finals appearance.  I think to be so close to the trophy puts extra pressure on the player and it is not easy to handle. Zverev, Tsitsipas, or Medvedev could speak about that for hours.

Federer

The quarterfinals loss with Hurkacz still hurts. No set won and “bagel” is something we neither Federer expected.

It is fair to say that Roger is not winning Grand Slam anymore. And it is not bold anymore to say he will hardly win any tournament in the future (with exception of Basel).

The time has come and we have to be prepared.

Barty

At the moment when I say everywhere and every time that anyone from WTA Top 100 can win any WTA tournament (Grand Slams included), the reality shows the absolute opposite.

Line-up of Barty, Sabalenka, Pliskova, and Kerber was the top-ranking semifinals for so long time. Kerber, number 28, was the lowest-ranked in the semifinals.

Ashleigh Barty won her second Grand Slam and confirmed her number one position in the WTA ranking. Pliskova was in her second Grand Slam final and lost again. However, she is on right track under Sascha Bajin’s supervision.

Aryna Sabalenka finally got in the last four at the really important tournament and that is a good sign.

We are probably back at times when the best ranked will win. And that is pretty good not just for the bettors but also for the game.

By the way, Barty has four tournament wins this season, the most from all players. That is the same number Djokovic has. Coincidence? I do not think so.

It seems the best is the best.

Wimbledon is over but the tennis is not

The second half of the season starts just now. And it will be very exciting.

There are several questions we need to get answers to.

Will Roger Federer say goodbye at Laver Cup? Will we see Rafael Nadal sooner than the clay season starts again in April 2022? Can Dominic Thiem return in a big style or did we see all of him? Who will win the Olympics? Can Djokovic win the fourth Grand Slam of the season? Will the ladies’ US Open winner be from the top ten?

That was just a short sample of questions, I bet you can ask many more. And we will find the answers to all of them.

Show your opinion in our US Open 2021 Winners poll.

Posted in BLOG, Tennis Column and tagged .

Tennis Pro Guru

Simon is the leading editor of TennisProGuru.com from 2015. He is an avid tennis player from age of 5, however, he never reached the pro level. Still, he likes playing tennis on different courts, with different rackets, and against different opponents. In his free time, you can find him watching all possible tennis matches he can find on the web or tv. Challenger or Grand Slam? It does not matter, just tennis matters.

He currently plays with:
Racket: Wilson Shift 99 V1
Strings: Babolat RPM Blast
Grip: Head Xtreme Soft
Shoes: Asics Gel Dedicate 7 (for hard outdoor and indoor courts) & Asics Gel-Game 5 Clay (for clay courts),
Balls: Dunlop Fort All Courts and Head Championship
Bag: Axiom Backpack

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