Djokovic: 105th Wimbledon Victory – Ties Federer's Record

After a comfortable 2-0 lead in sets, the Frenchman struck back, above all thanks to his serve, winning the third set in just 30 minutes with seven aces. In the decisive tiebreak Djokovic then narrowly prevailed and converted his match point with a diving lunge. All told, the seven-time Wimbledon winner had to battle for just over three hours on Centre Court before the victory was sealed.

In the presence of the 100-meter world record holder Usain Bolt, who had taken his seat in the Royal Box, Rinderknech was on level terms with the heavy favorite from the start. After his strong performance in the second round against Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas, Djokovic had a considerably harder time against the Frenchman, who had knocked out Alexander Zverev in the first round this year, than in previous matches.

"A bit of luck, a bit of skill at the end and a perfect tiebreak on my part," Djokovic assessed on Centre Court after his first match against the experienced Frenchman. "I'm glad I got through the tiebreak," the 24-time major winner breathed after the match he described as a "cat and mouse game." In the round of 16, Djokovic can now draw level with Navratilova with a 106th victory.

Historic Mark: 105 Victories at Church Road

"It's a great honor to make history in this sport," said the seven-time Wimbledon winner, who after the match point broke into a few dance steps for his daughter Tara in the stands, and quipped: "I'd propose a duel between Roger and me for 106." Djokovic took it in good humor: "You can almost always be sure that someone was even better."

At Wimbledon, Djokovic is hunting his 25th Grand Slam title overall after his third-round exit at the French Open in the Paris heat. At Roland Garros, the 24-year-old – whose categorization in the facts is described as a second-round exit – had to absorb a setback. By advancing to the round of 16 at Church Road, the Serb remains on the trail of his great goal.

In the round of 16 Djokovic now faces Russian Roman Safiullin, who prevailed surprisingly clearly 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 against Brazilian Joao Fonseca. Safiullin, currently ranked 132nd in the world, had previously eliminated Andrey Rublev and beaten his second top-30 player within a few days.

Sinner Cruises – Medvedev Eliminated by Struff

Almost simultaneously with Djokovic, world number one Jannik Sinner also secured victory on Court 1. The first Italian Grand Slam winner, who had stood in the last 16 at Church Road five times as the only player from his country, prevailed convincingly 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 against world number 81 Jenson Brooksby. Sinner will next face Japanese qualifier Shintaro Mochizuki, who surprisingly knocked out Spanish shooting star Rafael Jodar.

While Sinner and Djokovic had reason to celebrate, two-time Wimbledon semifinalist Daniil Medvedev already had to pack his bags. The number eight seed lost to the German veteran Jan-Lennard Struff in three sets 6-7 (4-7), 6-7 (5-7), 5-7. Struff overcame deficits in all three sets and ultimately won 7-6 (4), 7-6 (5), 7-5.

The 36-year-old German has thus reached the Wimbledon round of 16 for the first time in his career. In his three matches so far, the veteran has already won six tiebreaks, demonstrating impressive mentality. For Struff, ranked 74th in the ATP, it is his biggest success to date at the grass-court classic.

Sabalenka and Osaka into the Round of 16

In the women's draw, world number one Aryna Sabalenka advanced to her fourth consecutive Wimbledon round of 16 with a 6-4, 6-4 over Latvian Jelena Ostapenko. The Belarusian, who had yet to win a grass-court title, broke her opponent's serve at 2-2 and played the set out at a consistently high level with just a single unforced error. The same picture emerged in the second set: while the 2017 French Open winner held her own solidly, she ultimately could not match Sabalenka's class.

In the round of 16 Sabalenka now meets Naomi Osaka, while the 14th-seeded Japanese had earlier advanced to the last 16 with a routine 6-1, 6-3 over Daria Kasatkina. Two-time Grand Slam winner Jessica Pegula will face US teenager Iva Jovic in a duel for a place in the quarterfinals, the latter having followed up her win over Tatjana Maria by beating Ekaterina Alexandrova 6-3, 3-6, 6-4.

Debate Over the Future of Doubles

A shadow was cast over the sporting day by a heated debate about the future of doubles in professional tennis. From 2028, the doubles draws are to be drastically reduced: at Masters 1000 tournaments only 16 teams instead of 32 will compete, and at the level below only eight pairs instead of 16. In addition, singles players are to receive preferential access at Challenger events and the prize money split is to shift from 80:20 to 90:10 to the disadvantage of doubles.

In a longer statement from the tennis professionals, it read: "Doubles is not a carnival sideshow. It is the plan to end doubles as a legitimate profession - disguised as a cost-saving measure." It was countered that tennis is actually booming and 70 percent of recreational players worldwide play doubles. "It's a very money-driven world," read another statement, which all tennis professionals shared via their social channels calling for constructive dialogue.

The doubles draw, meanwhile, also brought positive news from an Austrian perspective. The 11th-seeded duo Lucas Miedler and Francisco Cabral defeated the Peruvian-Argentine pair Ignacio Buse and Marco Trungelliti 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 on Friday. Later, Austrian Oberleitner and his Czech partner Petr Nouza also won clearly 6-1, 6-2 over the Dutchmen Tallon Griekspoor and Botic van de Zandschulp.

Austrian Success in Doubles

Overall, after the third day of the tournament Wimbledon remains true to its reputation as a tennis mecca. With Djokovic, Sinner, Sabalenka, and the surprisingly strong Struff, numerous top-flight players remain in the title hunt. With another win in the round of 16, Djokovic has the historic 106th Wimbledon victory in sight and thus sole possession of second place in the all-time list.

With Italian tennis icon Nicola Pietrangeli – the first Italian player to reach the Wimbledon round of 16 five times, who had passed away in December at the age of 92 – the tennis world also lost a great personality. Sinner has now equaled his benchmark.

Outlook: The Hunt for the 25th Grand Slam Title

Defending champion Sinner faces Japanese qualifier Mochizuki in the next round, who knocked the 19-year-old Rafael Jodar out of the tournament 1-6, 7-6 (7-5), 6-4, 6-4. Djokovic, meanwhile, awaits Safiullin and hopes that another win will finally put him past Federer in the victories statistic.

"It's always nice to make history, especially here, it's a dream," Djokovic summed up his feelings after the historic victory. The Serb still has unfinished business at Wimbledon and wants to stand at the very top of the history books by finally winning his eighth title at Church Road.