Djokovic Left Alone in London as Serbs Exit Round One
After a brutal Wimbledon opening round, Djokovic is the only member of the Serbian contingent left in the main draw. Kecmanovic, Medjedovic, Lajovic and Kostovic are all out, some after a real fight.
- Out of the entire Serbian contingent in the Wimbledon main draw, only Djokovic advanced.
- Kecmanovic fell after five sets to defending champion Sinner, and Medjedovic also went the full five.
- Lajovic, in as a lucky loser, drew Fritz, while Kostovic met Sabalenka without winning a set.
- Just 1 Serbian player is through to the second round.
Around midday, while the crowds on the outer courts of the All England Club were still warming up, a pairing nobody in the Serbian corner wanted to see so early flashed up on the scoreboard. Miomir Kecmanovic against Jannik Sinner, first round. A bad draw, worse timing, and then a match that dragged on for hours and delivered a small drama of its own on the grass.
Kecmanovic took the opening set, led 4-6, and for a moment it looked like he might pull off one of those upsets that make Wimbledon what it is. But the defending champion tightened his serve, found his rhythm and turned it around, 6-3, 6-7, 6-2, 6-3. Five sets of fight, and in the end the same story as the rest of the camp: the Serb heads home, the rival moves on.
How did the whole Serbian camp fall?
The pattern repeated court by court. Hamad Medjedovic did his part, took the lead, then wilted against the experience of Austria’s Sebastian Ofner. That opening 6-1 for Hamad looked like a statement, but Ofner answered and pushed the match to five, 2-6, 6-4, 3-6, 4-6. Anyone who watched knows that was not a defeat without a fight, it was the kind that stays in your legs for days.
Dusan Lajovic came into the main draw through the side door, as a lucky loser from qualifying, and the draw immediately handed him American Taylor Fritz, about as tough a first-round opponent as grass can offer. In the women’s draw, Teodora Kostovic drew Aryna Sabalenka, the world number one, and there the math was merciless, no set won.
Add it up, and of the five Serbs in the main draw, four had packed their bags on day one. Only one remained, the one whose name carries all of Serbian tennis.
What does this mean for the rest of the tournament?
Djokovic was once again the Serbian lone rider. He came through with plenty of trouble, in a match that took him to five sets, and now he carries on his shoulders the hopes of a tennis nation used to seeing more than one name on the list. It is not a new role for him, but with each season it grows heavier.
What worries you is not one bad day, everyone loses on the biggest stages, that is part of the sport. What worries you is that Serbian tennis after Novak’s era leans on players still finding themselves on grass. Kecmanovic and Medjedovic showed character, played five sets against top opponents, but character does not qualify you for the second round. The result does.
Djokovic’s next match will be a fresh test, for him and for all of us who will sit in front of the screens again, cheering like it is a final. Because when he is left alone, he usually finds a way to make it look like he never was.
So let me ask you: is it time to start demanding results from the new generation, or after five sets like these do we still owe them a little more patience?
