Two men yet to drop a set at this year's Wimbledon face off on Sunday with a spot in the quarter-finals on the line, as defending champion Novak Djokovic meets Polish 17th seed Hubert Hurkacz.
Djokovic quelled a late attempt at a fightback from Stanislas Wawrinka in the third round, while Hurkacz came through a challenging affair with Italian 14th seed Lorenzo Musetti.
Match preview
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Since storming his way through to the semi-finals at SW19 two years ago, Hurkacz has often flattered to deceive in the Grand Slam tournaments and is yet to bring up even his second quarter-final appearance at a major.
However, the towering Pole is potentially only three sets away from reaching the last eight of a Grand Slam tournament for only the second time, although none of his three straight-sets wins on the SW19 grass so far this year have been a cakewalk by any stretch.
After seeing off Albert Ramos Vinolas in round one, Hurkacz was given a good run for his money by British wildcard Jan Choinski, and a typically dominant display on serve helped the world number 18 over the line 7-6[4] 6-4 6-4 against 14th seed Musetti in Friday's third-round battle.
Ending the match with a stellar 16 aces to his name, Hurkacz needed just the one opportunity to break Musetti's serve in the second and third sets of the match - as well as coming up clutch in the decider with a whopping 90% of points won on his second serve.
Musetti failed to take any of the four chances that he had to break Hurkacz on the day, as the 26-year-old improved to 25-14 for the season, and he already has one grass-court title to his name from last year's Halle Open - defeating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets in the final.
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While defeating Medvedev in straight sets is no mean feat, 23-time major winner Djokovic has proven to be a different kettle of fish for the 6ft 5in Pole, and the Serbian arrives for Sunday's affair having managed to avoid being taken to a second day of action against Wawrinka.
Denying the Swiss veteran the chance to complete a career Grand Slam, Djokovic cruised into a 2-0 lead before Wawrinka began to force the issue - much to the delight of the Centre Court crowd - but Djokovic escaped the 11pm curfew by 15 minutes with a 6-3 6-1 7-6[5] triumph.
Despite Wawrinka's late rally in the final set - the 38-year-old hit just three winners across the first two sets before posting nine in the decider - he did not manage to fashion a single break point opportunity against Djokovic, who has also overcome Pedro Cachin and Jordan Thompson in the current tournament, winning a tie-breaker on each occasion.
Still on course to equal Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam singles titles, Djokovic has one of Roger Federer's feats in his sights too, as the defending champion aims to match the Swiss legend's eight Wimbledon men's singles titles with a fifth successive triumph on British soil.
Only once has Djokovic suffered a fourth-round exit at SW19 - losing at this point to Mario Ancic in five sets in 2006, which was only his second appearance at Wimbledon - while his most recent last-16 exit from any major was at the 2020 US Open, where he was memorably disqualified for striking an official with the ball.
Tournament so far
Hubert Hurkacz:
First round: vs. Albert Ramos Vinolas 6-1 6-4 6-4
Second round: vs. Jan Choinski 6-4 6-4 7-6[3]
Third round: vs. Lorenzo Musetti 7-6[4] 6-4 6-4
Novak Djokovic:
First round: vs. Pedro Cachin 6-3 6-3 7-6[4]
Second round: vs. Jordan Thompson 6-3 7-6[4] 7-5
Third round: vs. Stan Wawrinka 6-3 6-1 7-6[5]
Head To Head
French Open (2019) - First round: Djokovic wins 6-4 6-2 6-2
Wimbledon (2019) - Third round: Djokovic wins 7-5 6-7[5] 6-1 6-4
Paris Masters (2021) - Semi-finals: Djokovic wins 3-6 6-0 7-6[5]
Madrid Open (2022) - Quarter-finals: Djokovic wins 6-3 6-4
Dubai Tennis Championships (2023) - Quarter-finals: Djokovic wins 6-3 7-5
As well as the countless records Djokovic is aiming to equal or break in the coming days, the Serbian also has a five-match unbeaten run to protect against Hurkacz since their maiden meeting in the first round of the 2019 French Open.
Djokovic and Hurkacz's second showdown came in the third round of Wimbledon four years ago, during which the Pole made things interesting with a second-set tie-breaker victory before Djokovic came through in four en route to another major title.
The duo are yet to lock horns on the grass since, but Djokovic has dropped only one set in their subsequent three meetings at the 2021 Paris Masters, 2022 Madrid Open and March's Dubai Tennis Championships, where Hurkacz did not fashion a single break opportunity during to a two-set quarter-final loss.
We say: Djokovic to win in four sets
Should any of Hurkacz and Djokovic's sets go to a nail-biting tie-breaker, it would take a brave soul to confidently predict the outcome between two men who thrive when the going gets tough, and the intimidating Pole can trouble most players on the tour with his unforgiving surge.
However, a returner with the mastery of Djokovic will prove a much sterner test, and while the champion may finally cede a set at this year's Wimbledon, a sixth successive win over Hurkacz and spot in the quarter-finals should come his way.
Ben Knapton
