The Sports Guru
Novak Djokovic is 39 and still refusing to leave. This covers his four-set win over Arthur Rinderknech at Wimbledon, the one that drew him level with Roger Federer on the tournament's all-time list of men's singles wins, how much harder it was than the record suggests, and the contrasting ease with which defending champion Jannik Sinner is going about his own title defence. One man is chasing history the slow way. The other is making it look simple.
Novak Djokovic reached the fourth round of Wimbledon and, in doing so, equalled Roger Federer's record of 105 men's singles wins at the tournament, beating Arthur Rinderknech 7-5, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4) on Centre Court. At 39, the seven-time champion is still finding ways to win matches he does not always control, and this was one of those. Three hours and one minute after it began, both players ended up flat on the grass after an eventful match point, which felt about right for a contest that asked more of Djokovic than the scoreline lets on. Defending champion Jannik Sinner, meanwhile, moved through with far less fuss.
A grind, not a procession
For two sets it looked routine enough. Djokovic took the first 7-5 and the second 6-4, doing the unglamorous work of staying just far enough ahead, and a straight-sets afternoon seemed the likeliest outcome. Rinderknech had other ideas. The big-hitting Frenchman came roaring back to take the third 6-1, suddenly finding the range on the shots that had been missing, and for a while the record chase looked like it might be put on hold. Djokovic's response was the tell-tale sign of a man who long ago stopped finding this sort of thing frightening: he did not panic, he simply tightened everything up and made sure the fourth-set tie-break went his way, winning it 7-4. It was less a demolition than a reminder that beating him still requires four clean sets, not three.
105, and the record he was never supposed to threaten
The number is the story. Matching Federer's 105 wins at the place Federer made his own is the sort of milestone that once looked untouchable, and Djokovic has hauled himself level with it in his late thirties, long after most of his contemporaries stopped. There is a temptation, every year, to write him off. Only weeks ago his French Open exit to Joao Fonseca had people wondering aloud how much longer he intended to go on. Grass, and Wimbledon in particular, keeps giving him the answer. He does not chase records so much as accumulate them by sheer refusal to be finished, and a win over Federer's total on the same lawns is the kind of symmetry the sport rarely serves up.
Sinner makes his point without breaking sweat
If Djokovic represents endurance, Sinner is the man trying to make the present his own. The defending champion produced one of his cleanest displays of the fortnight to dispatch American Jenson Brooksby in straight sets, barely troubled on his way into the fourth round. It was the sort of performance that sends a message to the rest of the draw: last year's title was not a one-off, and the holder is in ominous form. Sinner has already had to survive a five-set scare earlier in the tournament, which makes the ruthlessness of this outing all the more pointed. When he is switched on and error-free, he remains the man everyone else is measuring themselves against.
What comes next
Djokovic's reward is a fourth-round meeting with Roman Safiullin, the 28-year-old qualifier who has quietly put together a strong run and knocked out the highly-rated Joao Fonseca 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the last 16. Djokovic will start a heavy favourite, and winning would take him past Federer and into sole possession of the record, a milestone that would have seemed fanciful even a couple of years ago. Sinner, for his part, will fancy his chances against whoever emerges from his section. The tournament is reaching the business end, and the two men at the top of the men's game are arriving there by very different routes.
Verdict: the old master and the new one, both moving forward
Djokovic did not play his best tennis and it did not matter, which is precisely the point of him. He found a way, as he almost always does, and the reward is a share of a record that says everything about his longevity on grass. Sinner, by contrast, is barely being tested and looks the more dangerous for it. Wimbledon 2026 now has its clearest storyline: a 39-year-old chasing sole ownership of history against a defending champion who looks like he has no intention of surrendering the trophy. The draw has handed Djokovic the record within touching distance and Sinner a stage on which to prove last year was no accident. Which of them blinks first, if either does, is the only question the second week really needs to answer.
Frequently Asked Questions
By beating Arthur Rinderknech in the third round, Djokovic reached 105 men's singles wins at Wimbledon, drawing level with Roger Federer's all-time record for the tournament. A win in his fourth-round match would move him past Federer and into sole possession of the record. Djokovic is 39 and a seven-time Wimbledon champion.
Djokovic won 7-5, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6(4) in three hours and one minute on Centre Court. He took the first two sets before Rinderknech hit back to win the third 6-1, but Djokovic controlled the fourth-set tie-break to close out the match and reach the fourth round.
Defending champion Sinner produced one of his cleanest performances of the tournament to beat American Jenson Brooksby in straight sets and reach the fourth round. Having survived a five-set scare earlier in the event, the holder looked back to his ruthless best against Brooksby.
Djokovic faces Roman Safiullin, a 28-year-old qualifier, in the fourth round. Safiullin reached the last 16 by beating the highly-rated Joao Fonseca 6-3, 6-3, 6-3. Victory for Djokovic would take him past Federer's 105 wins and into outright ownership of the Wimbledon men's singles record.
Sources: Reporting by BBC Sport, corroborated by the ATP Tour, Olympics.com, TNT Sports, Outlook and VAVEL.
