Djokovic sets another record at Wimbledon and jokes about sipping margaritas on beach with rivals
London(AP) : Novak Djokovic added another record to his name by reaching Wimbledon's third round for a 19th time with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-0 win over Dan Evans on Centre Court on Wednesday.
It was Djokovic's 99th match win at Wimbledon overall, and the 19 third-round appearances put him one ahead of Roger Federer for most by any man in the Open Era.
It's hardly the most prestigious record for Djokovic, whose 24 Grand Slam titles — including seven at Wimbledon — are the most by a male player. But he could at least use it to poke fun at his new, and much younger, main rivals.
“Nineteen times, that's a great stat,” said the 38-year-old Djokovic. “That's probably almost as much as Sinner and Alcaraz have years in their lives.”
Well, not quite.
Carlos Alcaraz, who beat Djokovic in the last two Wimbledon finals, is 22, while No. 1-ranked Jannik Sinner — who was playing later on Centre Court — is 23.
The growing rivalry between Sinner and Alcaraz — especially in the wake of their five-set final at the French Open last month — has helped tennis move on from the era of the Big Three, where Djokovic is the last man standing after Federer and Rafael Nadal retired.
But Djokovic is too focused on proving he can still win another Slam to sit back and reflect on everything he has accomplished at Wimbledon.
“I don't pause to reflect, to be honest. I don't have time,” Djokovic said in an on-court interview. “I would like to. But I think that's going to come probably when I set the racket aside and then sip margarita on the beach with Federer and Nadal and just reflect on our rivalry and everything.”
Against Evans, Djokovic failed to convert his first nine break points in the first set. But once he got the breakthrough for a 5-3 lead — raising both arms in the air as if to say “finally” — he went five-for-six on break points the rest of the way.
“You have these kinds of days where everything goes your way,” said Djokovic, who didn't face a break point of his own until the final game. “Everything flows.”
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No unannounced load shedding in Kerala, outages due to overload, says Minister
Palakkad (PTI): Kerala Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on Saturday said there was no unannounced load shedding in the state, attributing recent power interruptions to temporary overload caused by high consumption.
Clarifying concerns raised from various parts of the state, the minister said the disruptions are not deliberate but occur when demand peaks, particularly between 10 pm and 11 pm.
"It is not being done intentionally. Power consumption has risen sharply, and when there is excessive and indiscriminate usage, the system experiences overload, leading to natural supply interruptions," he told reporters here.
His remarks come amid complaints that several areas have been witnessing frequent power cuts, often lasting around 15 minutes and occurring multiple times during the night.
Krishnankutty said the state's power demand has crossed 6,195 MW, putting pressure on the supply system. He added that around 70 per cent of Kerala's electricity is procured from outside, and existing power banking arrangements have been exhausted.
"We have approached the Regulatory Commission seeking permission to purchase more power. However, this will come at a higher cost," he said.
The minister said the government is trying to avoid increasing electricity tariffs and urged consumers to exercise restraint in usage to help manage the situation.
Responding to opposition criticism over the ruling LDF's earlier claims of a decade without power cuts, he said the current situation is not unique to Kerala.
A power crisis is emerging across the country, he said, and sarcastically asked the Opposition to take note of the role of natural factors in this.
Krishnankutty expressed confidence that the situation would improve within two days, while cautioning that long-term energy security would depend on enhancing in-state power generation.
He also warned that future generations could face serious challenges if adequate electricity production capacity is not developed within Kerala.
