Novak Djokovic produced one of the greatest escapes of his Wimbledon career before delivering a light-hearted quip about Lionel Messi, joking that he would happily swap more than five hours on a tennis court for the Argentine captain’s 90-minute football matches.The 39-year-old Serbian outlasted Felix Auger-Aliassime in a record-breaking five-hour, 15-minute Wimbledon quarterfinal on Tuesday. Afterwards, he was asked to compare himself with another sporting icon still competing at the highest level at the same age — Argentina captain Messi.Rather than commenting on Messi’s longevity, Djokovic jokingly referenced the difference in match duration.“It would be nice to play 90 minutes like him,” Djokovic said with a smile after spending more than five hours on Centre Court.
Argentina produce astonishing comeback
Djokovic’s humorous remark came just hours after Messi inspired Argentina to one of the most dramatic victories of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.The defending champions looked destined for a shock exit after falling 2-0 behind against Egypt, with Yasser Ibrahim opening the scoring before Mostafa Ziko doubled the Pharaohs’ advantage in the 67th minute.Messi’s evening had hardly gone to plan either. He saw a penalty saved by Mostafa Shobeir, struck the crossbar with a free-kick and watched the Egyptian goalkeeper deny several Argentine attacks.But the momentum shifted dramatically late in the contest. Cristian Romero headed home Messi’s free-kick in the 79th minute before the captain levelled the scores four minutes later with a thunderous strike.Deep into stoppage time, Enzo Fernandez completed an extraordinary turnaround, calmly slotting home the winner to seal a remarkable 3-2 victory and send Argentina into a quarter-final meeting with Switzerland.ALSO READ: Tearful Lionel Messi lifted aloft as Argentina’s locker room and Buenos Aires erupt after epic escape | Watch
Djokovic survives another Wimbledon marathon
Djokovic, meanwhile, was involved in an epic of his own.The seven-time Wimbledon champion edged Auger-Aliassime 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) in the longest Wimbledon quarterfinal in history to reach a record eighth consecutive semifinal at the All England Club.“These are the kind of moments that I still play tennis for,” Djokovic said.Reflecting on another marathon victory, he added: “I’m still able to battle these young guys that have 15 years less than me. I’m able to beat them at the tightest possible scoreline. In a sense, it is really a nice surprise. But at the same time, I always have the highest expectations for myself.”The Serbian also admitted he would have preferred the match to have been shorter.“I wish it was finals, so I don’t need to worry about how the body will feel tomorrow… I’m glad they stayed because it was honestly one of the best matches I was part of on this court in my career,” he said.While Messi needed 90 minutes — and a dramatic late comeback — to keep Argentina’s World Cup dream alive, Djokovic needed more than five hours to punch his ticket to another Wimbledon semifinal.
