Wimbledon(AP): Novak Djokovic waited. He waited for Nick Kyrgios to lose focus and lose his way. Waited to find the proper read on his foe's big serves. Waited until his own level rose to the occasion.

Djokovic is not bothered by a deficit in a game, a set, a match. He does not mind problem-solving. And at Wimbledon, for quite some time now, he does not get defeated.

Djokovic used his steady brilliance to beat the ace-delivering, trick-shot-hitting Kyrgios 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (3) on Sunday for a fourth consecutive Wimbledon championship and seventh overall

The top-seeded Djokovic ran his unbeaten run at the grass-court Grand Slam tournament to 28 matches and raised his career haul to 21 major trophies, breaking a tie with Roger Federer and moving just one behind Rafael Nadal's 22 for the most in the history of men's tennis.

Among men, only Federer, with eight, has won more titles at Wimbledon than Djokovic. In the professional era, only Federer was older (by less than a year) than the 35-year-old Djokovic when winning at the All England Club.

His comeback on a sun-filled afternoon followed those in the quarterfinals, when Djokovic erased a two-set deficit against No. 10 seed Jannik Sinner, and in the semifinals, when No. 9 Cam Norrie grabbed the opening set. In last year's title match at Wimbledon, Djokovic dropped the opening set. In the 2019 final, he erased two championship points against Federer.

There were two particularly key moments Sunday that went Djokovic's way, ones that Kyrgios would not let go as he began engaging in running monologues, shouting at himself or his entourage (which does not include a full-time coach), finding reason to disagree with the chair umpire (and earning a warning for cursing) and chucking a water bottle.

In the second set, with Djokovic serving at 5-3, Kyrgios got to love-40 a trio of break points. But Kyrgios played a couple of casual returns, and Djokovic eventually held. And then, in the third set, with Kyrgios serving at 4-all, 40-love, he again let a seemingly sealed game get away, with Djokovic breaking there.

The 40th-ranked Kyrgios was trying to become the first unseeded men's champion at Wimbledon since Goran Ivanisevic in 2001. Ivanisevic is now Djokovic's coach and was in the Centre Court guest box for the match.

Kyrgios is a 27-year-old from Australia who never had been past the quarterfinals in 29 previous Grand Slam appearances and last made it even that far 7 1/2 years ago.

In some ways, he stole the show Sunday. He tried shots between his legs. Hit some with his back to the net. Pounded serves at up to 136 mph and produced 30 aces. Used an underarm serve, then faked one later. 

 

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



Bengaluru (PTI): A 19-year-old student from Kerala, who was studying at a private nursing college here, allegedly died by suicide in his hostel room, police said on Friday.

The deceased was identified as Adhityan P A, a second-year student at a nursing college in Bommasandra, they said.

On April 29, he was found hanging from a ceiling fan in his hostel room, police said, adding that he left behind a suicide note stating that no one was responsible for his death.

Preliminary investigation suggested that he may have been suffering from depression, and there may have been other issues which are being probed, a senior police officer said.

According to police, in his complaint, the deceased's father, Pradeep S, claimed that a college representative informed him upon his arrival in Bengaluru that his son had died under suspicious circumstances and that it was a case of suicide in the college hostel.

"However, I firmly believe that my son would not have taken such a step. He was of good character and mentally strong. Therefore, I strongly suspect foul play in his death," he claimed.

He also highlighted an incident that occurred approximately 20 days ago, when his son informed him that some of his hostel roommates were involved in drug use and were caught by hostel authorities.

"They were warned along with my son, although he was innocent and not involved in the incident. This situation may be relevant to the present case," he stated.

The complainant has urged the police to conduct a thorough and impartial investigation into the matter and take appropriate legal action.

A case of unnatural death has been registered at Hebbagudi Police Station here. Further investigation is underway, and all allegations are being examined, police said.