(Provided by Tennis World USA)
Novak Djokovic has signed up to play at the Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic in Hurlingham the week before Wimbledon. Djokovic, ranked at No 1 in the world, opted not to play any ATP grass tournaments leading up to Wimbledon.
But Djokovic will still get some action ahead of Wimbledon as the Serb is set to play a match at the Hurlingham Club before going to The All England Club. “World No. 1 @DjokerNole set to play at The Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic as he prepares for @Wimbledon,” the Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic announced.
According to British tennis media, Djokovic will meet world No 10 Frances Tiafoe at the Hurlingham Club next Thursday.
Djokovic returns to Hurlingham ahead of Wimbledon
Last year, Djokovic also decided against playing any ATP grass tournaments leading up to Wimbledon.
Instead, Djokovic went to the Giorgio Armani Tennis Classic, where he demolished Felix Auger-Aliassime 6-2 6-1 in his first appearance at the Hurlingham Club. Djokovic had a stunning showing in his Hurlingham debut and that was acknowledged by his opponent.
“He was a lot better than me for sure. It was a difficult day on the court. He was on it. He was playing well. I was struggling with my serve quite a lot. Novak I felt like he was striking the ball well and returning the ball well from the first game,” Auger-Aliassime said after losing to Djokovic in Hurlingham last year.
After beating Auger-Aliassime, Djokovic went to Wimbledon, where he won his seventh title. This year, Djokovic is hoping for the same outcome – to get some solid preparation in Hurlingham and then win his eighth Wimbledon title.
Last year, Djokovic defeated Nick Kyrgios in the Wimbledon final to win his fourth consecutive Wimbledon title. If Djokovic wins his fifth consecutive Wimbledon title this year, he will have eight Wimbledon titles in his collection and tie Roger Federer’ s all-time record at The Championships .