Djokovic begins final Wimbledon preps with win over Auger-Aliassime in Hurlingham exhibition

World No 1 Novak Djokovic began the final preparations for his Wimbledon title defense with a straight sets win over Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime at the Hurlingham exhibition in London.

Djokovic needed only one hour and 10 minutes to defeat ninth-ranked Auger-Aliassime 6-2, 6-1. It was the Serb’s first appearance in a match, albeit an exhibition, since losing to arch-rival Rafael Nadal in the quarter-finals at Roland-Garros.

Djokovic is scheduled to play one more match at the exhibition event, which will likely be against Carlos Alcaraz, Casper Ruud or David Goffin. Nadal is also competing in the tournament and defeated Stan Wawrinka 6-2, 6-3 on Wednesday.

Djokovic will be looking to win his first Major since capturing his 20th Grand Slam title at Wimbledon last year. The Serb did not get the opportunity to defend his title at the Australian Open due to the controversy around his vaccination status and visa , and then lost to Nadal in Paris.

Djokovic is the top seed at Wimbledon, but will fall out of the top 5 after the ATP Tour decided not to allot any points for the 2022 Wimbledon Championships after the All England Club bared Russian and Belarusian players from competing in SW19.

Other Armani Tennis Classic results:
Wednesday: Rafael Nadal beat Stan Wawrinka 6-2, 6-3
Tuesday: Hugo Gaston beat Alexei Popyrin 6-4, 6-2

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