LONDON — Novak Djokovic matched Roger Federer’s all-time men’s singles record of 105 Wimbledon victories on Friday after overcoming a determined challenge from Arthur Rinderknech 7-5, 6-4, 1-6, 7-6 (4) to book his place in the fourth round at the All England Club.
The seven-time Wimbledon champion endured one of his toughest tests of the tournament as Rinderknech repeatedly threatened with his powerful serve and aggressive baseline play. Djokovic, however, produced his best tennis in the decisive moments, recovering after a disappointing third set to close out the contest in a fourth-set tiebreak after three hours and one minute.
The victory moved the 39-year-old level with Federer on 105 men’s singles wins at Wimbledon, with only Martina Navratilova’s overall record of 120 singles victories at the tournament remaining higher.
“To be able to make history in this sport is a huge honour and a huge privilege,” Djokovic said after the match. “Particularly here, it’s always been a childhood dream of mine to play this tournament. I’m not thinking about whether it’s 105 or 106. I’m just trying to win the match that’s in front of me.”
Djokovic even joked about sharing the record with his longtime rival.
“I propose a matchup between me and Roger for 106,” he said with a smile.
The Serbian entered Friday’s match full of confidence after a commanding straight-sets victory over Stefanos Tsitsipas earlier in the week, but Rinderknech presented a far more difficult obstacle. The Frenchman struck 35 winners across the opening two sets despite losing both, before finally converting his attacking approach into a dominant third-set performance.
Standing 6-foot-5, Rinderknech repeatedly troubled Djokovic with booming serves and frequent serve-and-volley tactics. He also produced several spectacular rallies, including a remarkable exchange while holding serve for 4-4 in the fourth set that brought the Centre Court crowd to its feet.
Despite those flashes of brilliance, Djokovic relied on his experience to weather the pressure. He elevated his serving in the deciding tiebreak, limiting Rinderknech’s opportunities and sealing victory with a composed finish.
“A bit of luck, a bit of skill, in the end,” Djokovic said. “It was pretty much a flawless tie-break from my side. I think I served extremely well there. For most of the match I struggled with my serve, but that was also because of his quality.”
“He deserves a round of applause for his performance today. It was a really tiring, really close match. Sometimes you just have to find a way to win, and I’m happy I did that today.”
Djokovic will next face Russian qualifier Roman Safiullin, who continued his impressive run by defeating Brazilian rising star Joao Fonseca 6-3, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the fourth round.
Safiullin, who returned this season after injury problems curtailed his 2025 campaign, had not won a tour-level match before arriving at Wimbledon but has now produced one of the tournament’s biggest surprises.
Djokovic leads Safiullin 3-0 in their career meetings and has yet to drop a set against the Russian. Their fourth-round encounter will mark their first meeting on grass.
Elsewhere, third seed Felix Auger-Aliassime also progressed with a comfortable 7-6 (1), 6-2, 6-1 victory over American qualifier Michael Zheng.
The Canadian will face Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the fourth round after the Spaniard defeated Hungary’s Marton Fucsovics 7-6 (3), 6-2, 6-3 to continue his strong grass-court campaign.
