Novak Djokovic ‘blessed’ to make history with 100th Wimbledon win against fellow Serb Miomir Kecmanovic

Djokovic can now look ahead to a match against Alex de Minaur in the last 16.

The Serbian star’s win means he has now come out on top in 100 Wimbledon matches, and afterwards, he admitted he was “blessed” to reach the landmark.

“Wimbledon is a favourite and a dream tournament of not just myself but the majority of players,” he said.

“Growing up, most kids dream of winning here and I’ve been blessed to do that many times here. Any history I make in my favourite tournament… I’m blessed.”

Both players had the chance to break in the early stages of the first set, but some thrilling tennis saw the score locked at 3-3.

Then the 24-time Grand Slam winner burst into life, holding serve before producing some superb shots to break his opponent and take a 5-3 lead.

Kecmanovic had hardly put a foot wrong, but Djokovic was clinical as he held again to take the opener 6-3.

Djokovic had won all three of his previous encounters with his compatriot, and it looked like this clash would be heading the same way as he took a 2-0 lead at the start of the second.

Djokovic then pulled one of the backhands of the tournament out of his bag of tricks to complete a double break and move three games ahead.

The 38-year-old won his seventh game in a row just before the hour mark to make it 4-0.

Another break and a hold extended that record to nine games in a row as Djokovic won the second 6-0.

It was a remarkable performance from the Serbian star, who recorded just eight unforced errors in the opening two sets.

Kecmanovic ended the remarkable run at the start of the third set as he held serve to take a 1-0 lead.

There was a lapse from Djokovic with the match in his grasp, as Kecmanovic broke serve to keep the contest alive, but the seven-time Wimbledon champion regained his composure to close out a 6-3 6-0 6-4 victory in one hour and 47 minutes.

De Minaur stands in the way of Djokovic and a 16th quarter-final appearance.

The Serbian holds a 2-1 head-to-head record over his Australian counterpart and won via a walkover when the pair were due to meet in last year’s tournament.

Speaking after his win over Kecmanovic, Djokovic said: “Alex has also improved his game tremendously in the last couple of years. He’s playing the tennis of his life. He’s definitely knocking on the door of the final stages of Grand Slams.

“He’s gotten to the quarters several times. Yeah, last year he had to pull out unfortunately because of his injury. This year again, he’s there. He hasn’t dropped a set. He’s playing well.

“You’re not super excited to play Alex de Minaur on grass, that’s for sure, because he’s so quick and he’s a complete player, all around. He has gained pace on his serve, as well. He hits his spots very well.

“Just a tough, very tough challenge expected. I’m looking forward to it. I think it’s going to be a great test to see where my game is at against a top player like Alex.”