As the 2022 tennis season began to wind down in the cold indoor stadiums across Europe, Novak Djokovic found himself in an unusual situation. In the Paris Masters final that November, Djokovic’s high level would have been sufficient to defeat many adversaries, but his opponent that night was even better. Nineteen-year-old Holger Rune fearlessly toppled Djokovic to win his first Masters 1000 title.
However, consistently performing at the top level is much harder than delivering occasional flashes of brilliance. Two years on from that memorable encounter, Rune has not advanced as much as he had hoped. This time, the match-up was decidedly one-sided. Under the Centre Court roof on Monday evening, an excellent Djokovic thoroughly outplayed Rune, silencing the crowd with a comfortable 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 win, returning to the quarter-finals of Wimbledon.
The crowd’s cheers were notable, with spectators chanting “Ruuuune” throughout the evening in a deep, elongated way that sounded similar to booing. After his victory, Djokovic thanked the respectful parts of the crowd and criticized those who he felt disrespected him. When the on-court interviewer suggested that fans might have been supporting Rune rather than disrespecting him, Djokovic responded: “They were, I don’t accept it. I know they were cheering for Rune but that’s an excuse to also boo. I’ve been on the tour for more than 20 years. It’s fine. I focus on the respectful people who appreciate the effort players put in. I’ve played in a much more hostile environment. You guys can’t touch me.”
This victory marks Djokovic’s 15th career quarter-final at Wimbledon and his 60th major quarter-final. Despite his recent surgery for a torn medial meniscus that forced him to withdraw from the French Open quarter-finals, Djokovic continues to beat top-tier players and remains a strong title contender.
Between his breakthrough win over Djokovic in Paris and his climb to a top-four ranking last year, Rune seemed poised to break through next after Carlos Alcaraz. However, tennis is a tough sport. While Alcaraz has continued to rise and Jannik Sinner has stepped up, this year has been challenging for Rune. His lack of confidence showed in his very first service game, where he lost his serve and trailed 2-0. Djokovic won the first 12 points of the match.
Djokovic served well, controlled most baseline exchanges, and expertly used his array of shots to keep Rune guessing, finishing the match strong despite the crowd’s loud cheers. “To all the fans that have respect and stayed here tonight, thank you from the bottom of my heart,” Djokovic said. “And to all the fans who have chosen to disrespect me, have a good night,” he added, referring to the “Rune” chants.
Rune saw no issue with the crowd’s behavior, referencing fans attempting similar chants during their 2021 meeting. “If you don’t know what was happening, probably it sounded like ‘boo’. But it was my name. I don’t think it played a massive part in the match,” Rune said.
Djokovic will next face Alex de Minaur, the ninth seed, in quarter-final number 60 on Wednesday. De Minaur earlier defeated Arthur Fils 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-3. Despite an injury scare, De Minaur said he was okay. In another match, Taylor Fritz, seeded 13th, staged a spectacular comeback from two sets down to defeat fourth seed Alexander Zverev 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 6-3.