When Jannik Sinner arrived at Wimbledon, there were questions aplenty. They hinged on the defeat he suffered at the French Open, where he wilted in the second round under the extreme Paris heat despite being two sets and 5-1 up. When he needed five sets to get past the first round at the All England Club, the intrigue about his physical health and state of tennis deepened. None of his achievements in the 52 weeks preceding Wimbledon — 76 wins against just six losses, and 10 titles — seemed to matter. But with two superlative performances, against Novak Djokovic in the semifinal and Alexander Zverev in the final, the World No. 1 silenced the doubters in the best possible fashion. Djokovic and Zverev were his two biggest threats, with the former a seven-time winner at SW19 and the latter the reigning Roland-Garros champion. But the Italian’s top-notch serving and baseline consistency fetched him his second straight Wimbledon and fifth Major title. The success was also Sinner’s tenth consecutive victory over Zverev. But even in defeat, the German can hold his head high. Since the start of 2024, men’s tennis has largely been a cat-and-mouse game between Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz. Zverev’s potential entry as the distinguished third will make the sport healthier.

The women’s game has had a more even spread of champions, and Wimbledon has been at the forefront of producing them. It was no different this year as Linda Noskova became the tenth different women’s singles winner at SW19 in as many years. The fact that Noskova, Iga Swiatek and Elena Rybakina are the only ones in this list to also feature in the current WTA top-10 is indicative of the depth in quality. The player from Czechia was spoken of but was never considered the favourite to win, for she had reached the quarterfinal stage at a Slam only once before. Yet, the 21-year-old put together a remarkable streak that culminated in the pulsating three-set triumph over compatriot Karolina Muchova (2023 French Open finalist). The most impressive bit was Noskova’s resilience in roaring back after missing out on five championship points in the second set. At the start of the tournament, there was concern that such elite performances would be dulled by protests from players demanding a better revenue-sharing model from the organisers. For a second straight Major, a temporary truce was called, allowing tennis to be solely in the limelight.

In tennis parlance, 39 years is when your career is in its autumn. But for Novak Djokovic, it is proving to be a glorious second summer.

History-making and record-setting are like second nature to him. Yet, his performance on Tuesday (July 7, 2026), under the dazzling white lights of Centre Court and against an opponent nearly 14 years his junior, was astonishing to say the least.

The Serbian great finished on the right side of a five-hour, 15-minute slugfest to oust third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-6(10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7(4), 7-6(4) and set up a much-anticipated last-four meeting with World No. 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner.

Djokovic has now reached eight straight singles semifinals at Wimbledon. It is also his 15th overall at the All England Club, equalling Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal’s single-Slam records at the Australian Open and French Open respectively.

In a fantastic co-incidence, Djokovic was early in the first-set tie-break when fellow 39-year-old Lionel Messi was fashioning a thrilling 3-2 World Cup win for Argentina over Egypt in far-away Atlanta.

Asked about it in the post-match press conference, the seven-time Wimbledon titlist chuckled and quipped: “It would be nice to play 90 minutes like him.”

That Djokovic was on the court for three hours and 45 minutes more – albeit in a less explosive and non-contact sport – was testament to his incredible fitness and supreme conditioning.

Djokovic’s ship did not always sail smoothly. He experienced discomfort in his left leg as early as the ninth game and called for a medical time-out. There were multiple occasions when he grimaced between points and continued stretching his legs. He also seemed out of breath after many a long-drawn rally. But he made it look enjoyable, letting out a wry smile from time to time.

It was an evening of undulating fortunes; Auger-Aliassime had set-points in the first stanza but did not capitalise; Djokovic was up a break in the fourth and yet allowed the match to drift into a decider.

But the 24-time Major winner was flawless when it was most required – in the 10-point match-tiebreak where he barely missed a shot.

It was a textbook example of how elites quarantine themselves and elevate their play. As Djokovic later mentioned, it was all about “management of nerves and the extreme tension”.

“These are still the moments I still play tennis for,” Djokovic said, after the longest quarterfinal in Wimbledon history. “I wish it was the final so that I didn’t have to worry about how the body will feel.

“But I am happy. I was telling the kids to go to sleep after the fourth set but they didn’t listen. I am glad they stayed because it was one of my best matches on this court.”