World No 1 Novak Djokovic on Sunday won hearts when he gave his racket to a young tennis fan at Centre Court. The Serbian player scripted history with the racket when he defeated Italy’s Matteo Berrettini in the Wimbledon final to win a record-equalling 20th Grand Slam. Djokovic received a rousing reception from the crowd for his gesture off the court.
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Djokovic won his sixth Wimbledon title by handing Matteo Berrettini a 6-7, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 defeat in the three-hour and 24 minutes final. ith this win, the 34-year-old now has 20 Grand Slams to his name as many as with Swiss maestro Roger Federer and Spain’s Rafael Nadal. Djokovic has won three Grand Slams this year – the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon – and will look to end the year with a Calendar Year Grand Slam.
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After the game, Djokovic, pumped up and celebrating, walked over to a seven-year-old Ivanka Li in the front row. Li and her father were holding up a hand-written placard wishing him luck. The six-time Wimbledon champion gave his racket to the girl.
While talking to Telegraph Sport Ivanka Li’s mother said,” She was just saying, ‘what has happened?’ She was asking, ‘is that a real racket?’ I had been taking my son and puppy for a walk at the Hampton Court so I haven’t seen it yet. My son is five years old so he couldn’t go to Centre Court. I really wish we were all there for it.”
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After talking to the seven-year-old’s mother, Telegraph Sport reported that Ivanka is a keen tennis player and had been runner-up in a junior tournament Sunday morning.
“She plays tennis and she works really hard. She’s improved quite a bit this last three months. It was the first time my daughter had been to a Wimbledon final. It was the first time she had seen him. I wish the racket brings luck to her so one day she could be at Wimbledon and maybe be like Emma (Raducanu). She absolutely loves tennis. She watches every single match with me,” the mother added.
