Djokovic fires warning to rivals

A relaxed Novak Djokovic has warned the rest of the Wimbledon field that he is ready to start another unbeaten run after his first-round win over Jeremy Chardy.

Few eyes have been on the world number two so far – despite his 41-game unbeaten run only coming to an end in the French Open semi-finals – but he showed he is a genuine contender as he displayed the form that has won him seven titles since January in a 6-4 6-1 6-1 win on Centre Court.

Chardy, the world number 52, was arguably a harder first-up opponent than any of his title rivals had to face, but nonetheless he swept him aside after overcoming early problems with the wind and his opponent’s serve.

It was all Djokovic after a ninth-game break of serve and he claims that he is ready to start another sustained spell of success after recharging his batteries following his Roland Garros loss to Roger Federer.

“It’s been the best and longest winning streak I have had in my career, and that’s incredible,” the Serbian said.

“With the seven titles I’ve won in a row, I got more attention. But this year it was easier for me to handle things on and off the court because I have gained the necessary experience in the last couple of years. It comes with the success.

“So when this streak ended in Paris, it was kind of a relief as well, because it was a successful five, six months for me, but also very long and exhausting. I’ve played so many matches.

“So I needed some time to relax and I’m happy to see that I’m playing well and that I’m mentally really fresh to have more success.”

Today’s game was Djokovic’s first since his Paris exit – he has spent the time in between resting and preparing for the All England Club – and he was pleased with the way he got back in the groove.

Chardy’s serve was deep and quick in the early games, causing Djokovic to scramble around the baseline but, after breaking him to move 5-4 ahead, he never looked back.

He took Chardy’s serve three times in the second set and twice in the final, with his opponent barely able to keep the ball inside the lines at times.

Chardy did cling on to his serve twice more but even then it was unconvincing and the outcome was never in doubt.

“It’s the first match in Wimbledon this year, the first official match I have had on grass so it took some time to get adjusted,” Djokovic said of his return to action.

“But all the credit to him for serving the way he did. It was really hard because he had a really high percentage of first serves. But that first break was crucial.”

While Chardy’s brilliance on serve was temporary, Djokovic’s was permanent.

He only dropped 11 points on serve and, as well as that, nearly every point that went beyond the first two shots resulted in Djokovic taking the spoils.

“I’m not great with the stats, but it is definitely one of the most dominant matches regarding the serve,” he added.

“Especially on the grass court, you need the serve. You need to have the accuracy and the efficiency. You need to get a lot of free points in order to put the pressure on your opponent.”