Djokovic wins in first match since knee surgery

Novak Djokovic said he was “extremely glad with the way I felt and the way I played” as he won his first match since knee surgery to reach the second round at Wimbledon.

Djokovic, seeking to equal Roger Federer’s men’s record of eight singles titles at SW19, beat Vit Kopriva 6-1 6-2 6-2 under the roof on Centre Court.

The Serb, 37, had an operation on a torn medial meniscus on 5 June, having aggravated the problem during the French Open.

He will next play British wildcard Jacob Fearnley.

Wearing a knee support on his right leg, Djokovic showed no signs of discomfort against the 27-year-old Czech qualifier, converting his sixth break point in a lengthy fourth game before racing through the rest of the first set.

He broke again early in the second set, stretching his right leg out to stay in a rally and then, in trademark style, converting defence into attack and forcing Kopriva into going long.

Three further breaks of serve hurried him to victory, Djokovic finishing the match with three consecutive aces as he moved to the next round in style.

“I tried to really focus on the game and not think about the knee too much,” the 24-time Grand Slam champion added in his on-court interview.

“Everything that I could do, I have done over the last three weeks, along with my team, to be able to play here for you today. I think if it was for any other tournament I probably would not have risked it, would not have rushed as much but I just love Wimbledon, love coming back here.”

There was an unlikely meeting of sporting greats after Djokovic’s win as he spoke to seven-time world snooker champion Ronnie O’Sullivan.

The 48-year-old Englishman was a guest in Djokovic’s player box and the Serb later revealed he was a “fan” and watched O’Sullivan play “when I was a kid”.

“I watch snooker just because of him,” said Djokovic. “Honestly, I watched him play many years ago. My father loved watching snooker, I only watched Ronnie. Whenever he would not play, I would not watch. We just had a meet-up, an interaction for the first time. It was great.

“He was one of the sport greats I used to watch when I was a kid. It was really nice to have him around. Hopefully we’re able to play some snooker because I’m really bad at snooker. I’m okay at pool or billiards, but snooker, I tried it twice, and it’s really, really tough.

“He’s a really, really nice person, nice guy, and very funny.” – bbc.com