Novak Djokovic has been part of many memorable tennis matches, and his legendary career added anoither chapter on Tuesday.
Djokovic defeated No. 3 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) in a 5-hour, 15-minute match in the quarterfinals at the Wimbledon.
After the marathon ended, Djokovic had a simple message about how he pulled out the victory.
“With racket and a lot of heart, and management of the nerves,” Djokovic said, via ESPN. “These are the kind of moments I still play tennis for.”
The 39-year-old celebrated after the final set, and he looked exhausted after a long match.
Novak Djokovic is 39 years old and just won a 5 hour and 15 minute match at Wimbledon 😮 pic.twitter.com/ekB1peElnX
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) July 7, 2026
The win secures Djokovic’s eighth straight Wimbledon semifinal appearance, which is a new record he continues to extend.
However, Djokovic isn’t concerned about the record.
“That’s great, but it’s just another semifinal for me,” he said, via The Tennis Letter. “I’m gonna look at all the numbers and everything when I finish my career. Right now, it’s all business. I still have to recover, I’m still in the tournament and I have the best player in the world in a few days time.”
This was also the second-longest match of Djokovic’s career, with the longest behind a 5-hour, 53-minute showdown against Rafael Nadal at the 2012 Australian Open.
It continues to be quite a career for Djokovic, who is out to prove that he can still compete despite being nearly 40 years old.
Next up is a clash against defending champion Jannik Skinner on Friday, and Skinner is the top-ranked player entering this year’s tournament.
