Djokovic, Tsonga Both Win To Set Up Fourth-Round Matchup
Novak Djokovic moved another step closer to capturing his seventh career Grand Slam title as he advanced to the Round of 16 at Wimbledon, beating Frenchman Giles Simon 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday.
The top-seeded and world number one Serb hit 31 winners and seven aces on his way to the straight set victory, and made the crowd hold its breath when he took a spill onto Centre Court during the third set, landing on his left shoulder.
He would need about four minutes of treatment before returning and taking three of the final five games to wrap up the victory in a little over two hours.
Jo-Wilfried Tsonga will be the next road block for Djokovic after the 14th-seeded Frenchman beat Jimmy Wang 6-2, 6-2, 7-5 Friday. Tsonga overpowered his Chinese Taipei opponent, blasting 53 winners including 15 aces to plow through his third-round foe.
Djokovic is 12-5 in his career against Tsonga and the two have previously met in the 2010 Wimbledon semifinals.
South African Kevin Anderson also pushed his way into the fourth-round, taking care of Italian Fabio Fognini in a long five-set match Friday. The 20th seeded Anderson won the final two sets of the contest to capture the 4-6, 6-4, 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 to notch the win.
Fognini’s loss adds insult to injury for the Italian, who was fined the equivalent of $27,500 yesterday for his arguing with the umpire during his first-round match against Tim Puetz.
As for Anderson, his victory could potentially set him up to play defending champion Andy Murray for a spot in the quarterfinals. Murray will battle Spain’s Roberto Bautista Agut later Friday to see who will play Anderson.
