Novak Djokovic: "I don't want to sound arrogant, but of course I consider myself favorite to win Wimbledon"

Novak Djokovic has expressed confidence in his abilities by stating that he considers himself the favorite to win the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

Djokovic was in action on Centre Court on Tuesday against Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals. The Russian converted his first break point of the match at 4-4 en route to clinching the first set.

The Serbian quickly bounced back and took a 5-0 lead in the second set, which he won 6-1. Djokovic then won the following two sets without much trouble to clinch the match 4-6, 6-1, 6-4, 6-3.

In his on-court interview, Djokovic stated that he loved the pressure of having a target on his back at Wimbledon.

Later, in his post-match press conference, the four-time defending champion backed himself as the favorite to win his eighth title at SW19, which would see him equal Roger Federer's record at the grasscourt Major.

"I mean, I don't want to sound arrogant, but of course I would consider myself favorite. Judging with the results I had in my career here, previous four occasions of Wimbledon that I won, and reaching other semifinal, so I do consider myself favorite, yes," he expressed.

After beating Rublev, Djokovic is through to his 46th Grand Slam semifinal, equalling Federer's men's singles record.

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"I'm sure that he's going to be very, very motivated to win" - Novak Djokovic on facing Jannik Sinner in Wimbledon 2023 SF

Jannik Sinner at the 2023 Wimbledon Championships.

Novak Djokovic defeated Andrey Rublev to record his 33rd consecutive win at Wimbledon. Only Roger Federer (40) and Bjorn Borg (41) have longer winning streaks in the men's singles event at the tournament than the Serbian.

The 23-time Grand Slam champion is also into his 12th semifinal at the grasscourt Major, with only Federer (13) competing in the last-four stage more times than him at SW19.

Jannik Sinner now stands between Djokovic and the Wimbolden 2023 final, in what is a rematch of last year's quarterfinal. Ahead of the contest, the former World No. 1 was all praise for Sinner, stating that he's a young player who is improving constantly and that his game is well suited to grasscourts.

"He's playing on a very high level. He likes to play on grass. He likes to play on quick surfaces because he likes to be aggressive and take control of the point. He's so young, so of course it's expected that he's going to improve. He's been serving better. On grass, obviously makes a difference," he said.

"He's a very complete player," he added. "Now first time in semis of Wimbledon. I'm looking forward to that challenge. We both have two days to recover. I'm sure that he's going to be very, very motivated to win. On the other hand, I am, too. Let's see what happens."

Djokovic, who has a 2-0 lead in the head-to-head against Sinner, is scheduled to face the Italian on Friday.