Djokovic wins record-equalling 20th Grand Slam and sixth Wimbledon title
Wimbledon, Jul 11: Novak Djokovic tied Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal by claiming his 20th Grand Slam title Sunday, coming back to beat Matteo Berrettini 6-7 (4), 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in the Wimbledon final.
The No. 1 -ranked Djokovic earned a third consecutive championship at the All England Club and sixth overall.
He adds that to nine titles at the Australian Open, three at the U.S. Open and two at the French Open to equal his two rivals for the most majors won by a man in tennis history.
The 34-year-old from Serbia is now the only man since Rod Laver in 1969 to win the first three major tournaments in a season. He can aim for a calendar-year Grand Slam something last accomplished by a man when Laver did it 52 years ago at the U.S. Open, which starts Aug. 30.
This was Djokovic's 30th major final among men, only Federer has played more, 31 and the first for Berrettini, a 25-year-old from Italy who was seeded No. 7.
It was a big sporting day in London for Italians: Their national soccer team faced England at Wembley Stadium in the European Championship final at night.
With Marija Cicak officiating, the first female chair umpire for a men's final at a tournament that began in 1877, play began at Centre Court as the sun made a rare appearance during the fortnight, the sky visible in between the clouds.
The opening game featured signs of edginess from both, but especially Djokovic, whose pair of double-faults contributed to the half-dozen combined unforced errors, compared with zero winners for either. He faced a break point but steadied himself and held there and, as was the case with every set, it was Djokovic who took the lead by getting through on Berrettini's speedy serve.
Berrettini came in with a tournament-high 101 aces and that's where his game is built: free points off the serve and quick-strike forehands that earned him the nickname Hammer.
Those powerful strokes sent line judges contorting to get their head out of harm's way. Djokovic occasionally took cover himself, crouching and raising his racket as if it were a shield to block back serves aimed at his body.
Not many opponents return serves at 137 mph and end up winning the point, but Djokovic did that at least twice. And the big groundstrokes that the 6-foot-5, barrel-chested Berrettini can drive past most other players kept coming back off Djokovic's racket.
That's what Djokovic does: He just forces foes to work so hard to win every point, let alone a game, a set, a match.
Indeed, this one could have been over much sooner: Djokovic took leads of 4-1 in the first set, 4-0 in the second and 3-1 in the third. But in the first, especially, he faltered in ways he rarely does, wasting a set point and getting broken when he served for it at 5-3.
In the ensuing tiebreaker, they were tied at 3-all, but Berrettini won three of the next four points with forehands, and closed it out with a 138 mph ace.
He strutted to the changeover and many in the full house of nearly 15,000 rose to celebrate along with him.
But Djokovic is nothing if not a fighter he turned things around from two sets down in the French Open final last month and he worked his way back into this one, which ended with Djokovic on his back on the court, basking in the crowd's cheers.
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Kejriwal discharge a blow to Centre's falsehoods, says Oppn; people's verdict already out: BJP
New Delhi (PTI): The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) celebrated former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal and his then deputy Manish Sisodia's discharge in the excise policy case on Friday, describing it as a vindication of constitutional values, while the BJP said the people had already given a political response on the issue.
Opposition parties said in unison that the development was a blow to the Centre's falsehoods and misuse of investigating agencies, though the Congress termed the BJP and the AAP as convenient allies.
An emotional Kejriwal broke down after the verdict and said the case against him was the "biggest political conspiracy".
"The court has proved that Kejriwal, Manish Sisodia and AAP are 'kattar imaandar (honest to the core)'," he said. Sisodia said the ruling reaffirmed the public's faith in the Constitution.
The Trinamool Congress, RJD, Samajwadi Party and Left parties welcomed the verdict and said its exposed the BJP's politics of vendetta. The Congress, however, said Kejriwal's discharge was a "predictable script".
"The BJP is not a political party. It is a shape-shifter, a wishful serpent - 'Icchadhari Naag'. It will stoop to any level for one obsessive goal: defeat Congress - 'Congress Mukt Bharat'," Congress media and publicity cell head Pawan Khera said.
"For 12 years, they spewed venom at the TMC. And now? Narendra Modi himself is showering it with praise -- not out of respect, but to land a cheap blow at the Congress," Khera said in a post in Hindi on X.
"Elections are coming. So the script is predictable. Cases against Congress leaders will suddenly accelerate -- P Chidambaram has already been dragged back into the spotlight because Tamil Nadu is going to the polls. Meanwhile, proceedings against their convenient allies in the AAP and others will quietly vanish in light of the Gujarat and Punjab elections," the Congress leader said.
Congress MP Manish Tewari and party veteran Margaret Alva, however, congratulated Kejriwal on his discharge in the case and slammed the BJP's "politics of vendetta".
The BJP, on its part, said though Kejriwal was discharged for "lack of evidence", the probe agency would decide its next course of action.
BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said it was a "technical matter" and the party would come up with a "structured response" on the court's judgment after studying it.
"The people of Delhi have given him (Kejriwal) a political response on political grounds. The agency concerned will decide its next course of action on technical grounds," the Rajya Sabha MP said at a press conference at the BJP headquarters.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh alleged the case was part of a conspiracy to defame the party leadership and referred to the period of incarceration faced by several leaders. Former chief minister Atishi said the verdict showed how false allegations were made to target AAP leaders.
Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann said, "Truth always triumphs."
Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav said the collapse of the excise policy case was a "moral death sentence" for the BJP as it had betrayed the people of Delhi.
"Today, every honest person will breathe a sigh of relief, while the BJP supporters must be writhing in deep shame," Yadav said.
RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav welcomed the court order and demanded that fresh elections be held in the national capital.
"False lawsuits are being filed against opposition leaders. Arvind Kejriwal has suffered a lot due to this (case). We demand that elections be held again in Delhi," Yadav told reporters in Patna.
"It's a very good judgment. It shows that we still have hope in the judicial system. BJP leaders should apologise to the nation for continuously targeting opposition leaders," CPI-M general secretary MA Baby said.
CPI general secretary D Raja said the verdict proved that the BJP reduced federal probe agencies to "instruments of political vendetta".
"When investigative institutions are twisted into political weapons, it is not just individuals who are targeted, it is democracy itself that is put on trial. The country deserves accountability for this abuse of power," he said.
TMC MP Saket Gokhale alleged that the case was "politically motivated" and aimed at "defaming" opposition leaders.
"A fake fabricated case was filed by the BJP to defame opposition leaders who were arrested and mistreated in order to break their will and tarnish their reputation. Yet again, BJP's shameless tactic of using CBI and ED as their political tools stands exposed. The Modi-Shah Government will soon fall apart just like these fake cases," Gokhale posted on X.
Social activist and Kejriwal's former mentor, Anna Hazare said the verdict must be accepted as the judiciary was supreme. The anti-corruption campaigner advised Kejriwal to work for the society and the country and not think of himself or his party.
