Djokovic resumes rain delayed comeback bid

Djokovic trailed 7-6 (8/6), 6-1 when play was suspended on Friday evening due to rain and bad light.

July 02, 2016 05:36 pm | Updated 07:29 pm IST - London

Novak Djokovic resumed his bid for an epic Wimbledon escape act on Saturday after rain interrupted the defending champion's attempt to battle back from two sets down against Sam Querrey.

Djokovic trailed 7-6 (8/6), 6-1 when play was suspended on Friday evening due to rain and bad light.

But the world number one had recovered from an equally unpromising two-set deficit in a rain-interrupted Wimbledon match against Kevin Anderson last year and he was showing signs of another dramatic revival on Court One before the rain returned.

Breaking Querrey twice in the first four games, Djokovic roared into a 4-0 lead until showers sent the players scurrying back to the locker room after 17 minutes of play.

After a delay of two hours, including a long period when the covers were off and the sun was out without any play, Djokovic and Querrey were finally able to get back to work just before 1325GMT.

Djokovic, bidding for a third successive Wimbledon title and a rare calendar Grand Slam, has made at least the quarter-finals on his last seven visits to Wimbledon since losing to Marat Safin in the second round eight years ago.

The 29-year-old has also made the last eight of each of the last 28 Grand Slams since losing to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the third round of the 2009 French Open.

If Djokovic is beaten by American 28th seed Querrey, he will fail to equal Rod Laver who lies in second place on the all-time list of consecutive Grand Slam wins with 31.

Action on Centre Court, which has a retractable roof, began on time at 1200GMT, with Romanian fifth seed Simona Halep playing Kiki Bertens.

Later on the main showcourt, former Wimbledon champion Andy Murray takes on Australia's John Millman, while Canadian sixth seed Milos Raonic faces Jack Sock. . © AFP, 2016

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