Novak Djokovic strolled into the fourth round of the 2022 Wimbledon Championships with a flawless victory, defeating compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic 6-0, 6-3, 6-4 in straight sets.
Kecmanovic was expected to be a difficult opponent for the Serb but came nowhere near to bothering him, as the 20-time Grand Slam champion put on as dominant a showing as fans had ever seen from him at SW19.
With the victory, the 35-year-old now has a 24-match unbeaten streak on grass, the third longest win-streak on the surface in the Open Era, trailing behind only Roger Federer (65) and Bjorn Borg (41).
In the next match, the World No. 3 will take on man-of-the-moment Tim van Rithjoven, who is on a hot streak himself. Following his dream run at the 's-Hertogenbosch Open, where he defeated World No. 1 Daniil Medvedev in the final to win his maiden ATP title, the Dutchman was granted a wildcard for Wimbledon.
Making ample use of the opportunity, van Rithjoven has now defeated two seeded players back-to-back at the tournament to set up a meeting with Djokovic. The World No. 104 backed up his four-set victory against 15th seed Reilly Opelka in the second round with an even more impressive straight-sets victory over 22nd seed Nikoloz Basilashvili.
As much as they praised Djokovic for his performance on the night, tennis fans on social media were even more excited about the upcoming clash, remarking that it would be the hardest test the Serb has faced at the tournament so far.
While the 20-time Grand Slam champion remains the favorite to book his place in the last eight, users on Twitter were eager to see how the 25-year-old will handle the pressure of playing a seasoned veteran who is in the form of his life.
"Djokovic is hitting his forehand as good as I’ve seen. He also hit 36 winners and made just 19 errors all match. We’re watching a master at work and all we can do is appreciate," one fan tweeted.
"Can’t think of a single player who would beat Novak at this level on a grass court of this speed," another fan wrote.
"Don’t know if [Tim van Rijthoven] can make things interesting against Djokovic, but he’s earned that challenge," one account posted.
"I’ve been saying that tennis fans are going to lose their mind when Novak gets beaten by a Dutch guy nobody heard of until like a month ago. Tim van Rijthoven looks like a real threat," another fan tweeted.
Novak Djokovic will face off against Tim van Rijthoven for the first time
Novak Djokovic and Tim van Rijthoven have never met on the ATP Tour till date and will take on each other for the first time on Sunday. A victory against the Dutchman would pit the former World No. 1 against either Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals.
A potential semifinal against ninth seed Cameron Norrie looms ahead of the 20-time Grand Slam champion, while Rafael Nadal is on track to meet the World No. 3 in the final in what would be their 60th career meeting.
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