"If you think how big Novak Djokovic is, you struggle" - Jannik Sinner

Jannik Sinner stated that Novak Djokovic becomes all the more difficult to face if one pays begins to pay attention to his greatness.

In the first semifinal at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships on Friday, July 14, Sinner lost to Djokovic in straight sets. Despite giving his all, the Italian could barely trouble the four-time defending champion, who won the match 6-3, 6-4, 7-6(4) in two hours and 46 minutes.

In his post-match press conference, Sinner touched upon the difficulty of facing Djokovic and the mental strength the Serbian possesses.

"Obviously you know that you play against the best player in the world at the moment, especially on this surface. But, as I said, I don't think about this so much because I feel like you have to make your own decisions on the court. Obviously, if you think how big he is, you struggle," he said.

"His mental side is very strong, for sure. Especially, as I said before, the important moments, he knows exactly how to play them. He's not going to give you something. I also had some easy shots which I missed. I was up in the tiebreak, made a double-fault and a couple of rally misses. It's also not easy," he added.

When asked about how effective Djokovic is with his serve, Sinner stated that the 23-time Grand Slam champion has actually improved his serve now. He further said that even when his serve was not on point, it still barely misses the line.

"No, yeah, it's tough to read. I felt like he has improved also the serve a little bit. And when he's missing, he's not missing on much. It's always quite, quite close to the lines," he explained.

"I felt like I was returning good the more the match went more. I started to play better. But, yeah, it is a very tough serve to return because also especially first serve is not bouncing quite high. It's quite flat with a little bit of slice and everything. It's a good serve, yeah," he added.

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Jannik Sinner labels Novak Djokovic the favorite to win Wimbledon 2023

Novak Djokovic is a seven-time Wimbledon champion.

Novak Djokovic faced six break points against Jannik Sinner and saved all of them. He defeated the Italian in straight sets to reach his fifth consecutive Wimbledon championship match.

Djokovic, who has won the Australian Open and French Open titles this year, is now only the second player in the Open Era (after Ken Rosewall in 1974) to reach multiple Grand Slam finals in a year after turning 36 years old.

When asked if anyone could stop the Serbian from winning the Wimbledon title this year, Sinner stated that Djokovic has the experience of playing in finals at SW19 and is the favorite irrespective who he faces.

"I don't know [if anyone can stop Djokovic from winning the Wimbledon title]. It depends also in what situation they will play. Obviously the other finalist we don't know yet. They are two different players," he said.

"Obviously he has been in this situation much more often than his opponent is going to be. He played more grasscourt matches than his opponent. But let's see. It's also a final with more pressure maybe also and everything. So let's see. But, yeah, he is the favorite for sure," he added.

Carlos Alcaraz or Daniil Medvedev stands between Djokovic and a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title.