"It was edgy, it was a little bit nervy, it was a little bit moany" - Greg Rusedski raises Novak Djokovic concern despite Wimbledon quarter-final progress

Novak Djokovic is in another Wimbledon quarter-final, but his win over qualifier Roman Safiullin was not his most convincing display by any means. He would receiver a code vionation following an angry outburst enroute to a 7-6(6), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 triumph, something that Greg Rusedski raised caution to as he noted the strapping around his shoulder.

It is the 17th time he has made it to this stage at Wimbledon, continuing his magnificent record at the venue. He was made to work in a match he was supposed to be the outright favourite for. Safiullin came into the tournament ranked outside the world's top 100, but was playing some brilliant stuff. An early win over Andrey Rublev set the tempo with a stunning showing against Joao Fonseca sending out a statement of intent to the seven-time Grand Slam champion.

He sailed into a 5-2 lead in the first set but could not see it out as Djokovic went on to break back and forced a tiebreak. He took three attempts to get the first set in the bag. A single break in the second was enough for him to double his lead, but the third set was a lot sketchier. He would go on to lose it while his level plummeted significantly. Shouts and cries of anger and frustration by the Serbian got him a warning.

He brushed this off in an instant enroute to playing a fourth set, using his wealth of experience and class to prevail in a very tricky contest. His ambitions of winning a 25th Grand Slam title are still very much on as he eyes up an unprecedented record.

There was much talk about the Djokovic performance by Rusedski who recalled proceedings while trying to figure out what went wrong with Djokovic in the third set that led to that heated outburst. “Djokovic got off a perfect start,” Rusedski said on his podcast. “He moved ahead and then all of a sudden Djokovic had a dip, he lost the third set, won in four, but he was moaning, complaining.

“He got a warning for verbal abuse language, he hit a ball into the backstop from the opposite side of the court, which was in the direction towards the royal box. It wasn’t your normal Novak Djokovic. It was edgy, it was a little bit nervy, it was a little bit moany, but he found a way to win, and that’s the most important thing."

He touched on the shoulder injury that has proved to be somewhat of a pest in recent times. He missed a number of Masters 1000 events in the build up to Roland Garros with very little time spent on court as he looks to recover and preserve his body. This is no mean feat at 39-years-old, but he is still remarkably coping, showcasing what an astonishing athlete he is.

Even then, Djokovic can still suffer problems with the former British number one citing that shoulder as a possible catalyst. “Now he has two days off. He had the heavy taping on the shoulder as well when he took his shirt off," he commented. "And he looked like he was struggling with getting some air in his lungs because he was taking a lot more time in between points.

"So he needs the 48-hour rest plus to get ready for his next round against Felix Auger-Aliassime, the Canadian who’s played very well in Paris making the semis again here in the quarterfinals. So we’re going to see where Novak is. Why was he in such a bad mood? And let’s see if he can find a solution. We’re gonna find out where his real form is on Wednesday.”

Rusedski continued his analysis by moving onto the slower conditions. This is not due to the court from his perspective, but the balls. This could be a major blow for Djokovic and his aspirations of glory.

“What I’m finding, having watched this tournament this year, every player is saying it’s playing so slow,” he stated. “They said they haven’t changed the courts whatsoever, but I think it’s the ball. It’s slowed down, it’s fluffier, it’s heavier.

“Guys can’t get through you because of the balls. You have to change with heights, variation, spins, slice. You can’t just go flat, flat, flat and hit through anybody. I think that’s what (Jannik) Sinner and Djokovic are struggling with a bit.”

Now with a few matches under his belt, the 24-time Grand Slam champion will hope to be at full sharpness ahead of his clash against Auger-Aliassime. The Canadian has won just one match at SW19 since reaching the quarter-final back in 2021. He is back with a bang following a contentious last-16 tie against Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and comes up against Djokovic as the higher ranked player.

Surprisingly, there is not many matches played between the two. Both their prior showdowns came back in 2022 with only one being on the ATP Tour. Djokovic won that one in the quarter-final of the Rome Open while Auger-Alaissime took him down in the Laver Cup. It is set to be a glorious contest between two top tennis talents with the winner possibly facing the world number one Jannik Sinner in the semi-finals.