Novak Djokovic assured the "phenomenal" Nick Kyrgios will soon be back in a grand slam final after defeating the spirited Australian in the Wimbledon showpiece on Sunday.
Kyrgios, appearing in his maiden major final and as the first Australian to make the Championship match at the All England Club since 2003, raced out the blocks to claim the first set.
Djokovic struggled to respond to the big-serving and heavy-hitting Kyrgios, but eventually broke for the first time in his third career meeting against the Australian to wrestle back some control.
As Djokovic grew into the game and manipulated his opponent around the court, Kyrgios became increasingly frustrated, arguing with both the umpires and one particular vociferous member of the crowd.
The world number three kept his cool, boasting a familiar aura of calmness, and ultimately triumphed 4-6 6-3 6-4 7-6 (7-3) despite Kyrgios rediscovering his formidable serving in the latter exchanges.
That moved Djokovic one grand slam title behind Rafael Nadal's record of 22 major successes, but much of his post-match focus was on Kyrgios, whose outbursts did not detract from the Serbian's admiration of his opponent.
"Nick, you'll be back. Not just in Wimbledon but in many finals," Djokovic said in his on-court interview.
"I really respect you a lot, you're a phenomenal player and athlete, you've been told that for many years.
"Everything is starting to come together for you and I'm sure we will see much more of you in the later stages of grand slams.
"I never thought I was going to say so many nice things about you considering our relationship – okay, it is officially a bromance!"
The pair had exchanged messages on social media in the build-up to the showpiece, promising to enjoy dinner with one another after the final, with the winner paying for the meal.
Djokovic joked, "Yeah, that's why he lost", when asked if he would foot the bill for the duo's evening in SW19 or further afield, before adding: "I'm sure this is the start of a wonderful relationship for us.
"Let's start with dinner and drinks and then we will see!"
Djokovic won the crown for a fourth straight time to claim a seventh title at the tournament overall as he moved level with Pete Sampras in terms of Wimbledon crowns, only one behind Roger Federer's eight.
The 35-year-old now has 86 wins at the London major, his best record in a single grand slam, with only Federer (105) winning more matches at Wimbledon, and Djokovic was quick to discuss how much the tournament means to him.
"I lost words for what this tournament and what this trophy means to me, to my coach, my family and my team. It always has been and will be the most special tournament in my heart," he added.
"It is the one that inspired me and motivated me to start playing tennis, when I was little at a mountain resort in Serbia and I saw Sampras win his first title in 1992, I asked my parents to buy me a racquet.
"And my first image in tennis was grass, and Wimbledon, and I always dreamed of coming here, then realising my childhood dream and winning here, every single time it gets more and more meaningful.
"I'm very blessed and very thankful to be standing here with the trophy."
Swiatek opens Olympic bid with straight-sets win over Begu
Iga Swiatek got her bid for Olympic gold up and running with a straight-sets victory over Irina-Camelia Begu in Paris.
The world number one is the firm favourite to win gold at Roland-Garros, where she has won four editions of the French Open, including the last three in a row.
Swiatek and Begu traded breaks at the outset of their clash on Court Philippe-Chatrier, but the Pole continued to put her opponent under pressure when receiving and back-to-back breaks took the opener away from Begu.
The second set was more of a slog for Swiatek and a break in the seventh game had Begu serving to level things up, but Swiatek found a second wind to break back and only dropped one further point from there, winning 6-2 7-5.
Swiatek will face Argentina's Nadia Podoroska or home favourite Diane Parry in the second round, with the likes of Danielle Collins, Jessica Pegula, Naomi Osaka and Angelique Kerber also on her side of the draw.
On the other side of the bracket, Jasmine Paolini – the runner-up at both the French Open and Wimbledon this year – advanced with a 7-5 6-3 win over Ana Bogdan.
Data Debrief: Twenty-two and counting for Swiatek
Swiatek has now won a remarkable 22 successive matches on the courts of Roland-Garros, last losing at the venue to Maria Sakkari in the 2021 French Open quarter-finals.
In all clay-court tournaments, she has won her last 20 matches, also capturing titles in Madrid and Rome earlier this year.
Djokovic thrilled by prospect of 'one last dance' with Nadal
Novak Djokovic is thrilled by the prospect of meeting Rafael Nadal for "one last dance" at the Paris Olympics, if the Spaniard overcomes an injury setback to feature at Roland-Garros.
Thursday's men's singles draw saw Djokovic paired with Australia's Matthew Ebden in the first round, with Nadal taking on Marton Fucsovics.
The legendary duo – who have won 46 grand slam singles titles between them – will meet in the second round if they both advance through their openers this weekend.
Djokovic and Nadal have previously faced off on 59 occasions, with the Serbian winning 30 of those contests but losing four of the last six, the most recent being a Nadal victory in four sets in the 2022 French Open quarter-finals.
Nadal's participation at the Games was thrown into doubt when his coach Carlos Moya said he had suffered a "setback" on Thursday and required 48 hours of rest.
If Nadal – who is widely expected to retire later this year – does make the tournament, Djokovic is looking forward to the prospect of facing him for a 60th time.
"Obviously he hasn't played much. His ranking dropped, so there was always going to be that possibility of me meeting him in an early round and there we go," Djokovic said.
"It's going to be a spectacle, definitely, if we get to meet. We will spread some fireworks on the court, like the good old times.
"I hope we get to meet because it will probably be one last dance for the both of us."
Djokovic is set to appear at his fifth Olympics in the French capital, the joint-most by any male player since the sport returned to the Games in 1988 (with Yen Hsun Lu).
He is the player with the most matches played (19) and joint-most matches won (13, level with Roger Federer) at the Olympics since 1988.
However, his best result at the Games remains a Bronze medal at Beijing 2008, when he was beaten by eventual gold medallist Nadal in the semi-finals.
Djokovic lost the bronze medal match to Pablo Carreno Busta at the delayed Tokyo Games three years ago, also losing to Juan Martin del Potro at both London 2012 and Rio 2016.
Linette dominates first all-Polish WTA final to win Prague Open
Magda Linette rounded off her Olympic preparations in style as she claimed her third WTA title with a comfortable win over Magdalena Frech at the Prague Open.
Linette, who beat Viktoriya Tomova and Linda Noskova on her way to the final, won in straight sets 6-2 6-1 as she now heads to Paris to face Mirra Andreeva.
The world number 41 was in the ascendency from the off, forcing a break in the fourth game and never looking back.
Despite the best efforts of Frech, who saved one set point, Linette continued to apply the pressure and another break put her a set up.
Linette would again break in the fourth game of the second set, winning three games on the bounce to secure her first career win over her compatriot.
Data Debrief: Linette prevails in first all-Polish affair
The final in Prague between Linette and Frech was the first all-Polish WTA level final in the Open Era.
Linette's triumph over her opponent was her first, having lost in the pair's previous encounter in Saint-Malo back in 2022.
During the contest, the world number 41 gave nothing away, saving all four of the break points she faced while converting three of the seven she had against Frech.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
