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Novak Djokovic's son Stefan was conspicuous by his absence in the player's box when his dad beat Nick Kyrgios on Sunday to win his seventh Wimbledon title.
Djokovic, 35, recovered from a set down to beat the first-time Grand Slam finalist in a fourth-set tie-break to win his fourth straight title at SW19. That made him the fourth male player in the Open Era to do so, joining Bjorn Borg, Pete Sampras and Roger Federer. It was also the Serb's 21st Major, putting him just one behind all-time Grand Slam title leader Rafael Nadal.
During an interaction on Tennis Channel, Djokovic explained the absence of his son Stefan in his player box on Sunday. The Serb said that Stefan was busy playing tennis with his friend Bobby, American men's doubles legend Bob Bryan's son.
Djokovic added that he's very happy to see his son play the game rather than watch him win.
"I love the fact that he chose to play tennis instead of watching me win," Djokovic said. "Of course, I always love to have him here, have experienced that a few times last year. I just love that he doesn't mind not having attention, or he doesn't mind the attention as well. He is fully present and immersed in playing tennis with his friend Bobby Bryan, the son of Bob Bryan."
The 35-year-old added that his soon-to-be eight-year-old son is very curious to know the various nuances of the sport. It makes him super proud that despite getting to an age where he's able to understand things - like the significance of his dad's seventh Wimbledon triumph - Stefan is focussed on his tennis.
"It's so fun to see them (Stefan and Bobby), follow them these days, watch them play," said Djokovic. "He's almost 8 years old. So yes, he can understand and appreciate a bit more everything that is happening."
"He is fully focussed on his own tennis - He is asking questions every time every day - strings, head size, grip..why is this, why is that. He has got millions of questions. He's so curious. It's lovely. It makes my heart full," he added.
"It was an unbelievably special occasion to have Wimbledon final on the same day as our marriage anniversary" - Novak Djokovic
Novak Djokovic married his high-school mate Jelena Ristic (now Djokovic) on July 10, 2014. The couple celebrated their eighth wedding anniversary on the day Djokovic won his seventh Wimbledon title.
During his interaction on Tennis Channel, Djokovic said that his wedding anniversary falling on the same day as his seventh Wimbledon triumph made it a very special occasion. He also thanked the on-court interviewer Sue Barker for "reminding" him about his anniversary.
"Sue Barker on the court - she saved me," said Djokovic. "She reminded me on the court about my anniversary. Otherwise, I would have been in big trouble. ... It was of course an unbelievably special occasion to have Wimbledon final on the same day as our marriage anniversary. My daughter, parents and family. It always adds more flavour to everything that's happening."
Despite his triumph on Sunday, Novak Djokovic slipped to seventh in the ATP rankings. That's because this year's Championships were stripped of ranking points after Wimbledon barred Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating this year following Russia's Ukraine invasion.
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