𝓤𝓷𝓲𝓽𝓮𝓭 𝓝𝓮𝔀𝓼

Dan Evans believes he has earned one more shot at claiming a statement Wimbledon win after securing a second-round showdown with Novak Djokovic.

Evans won the battle of Britain against fellow wild card Jay Clarke 6-1 7-5 6-2 to claim his first victory in SW19 since 2021.

His reward is a second career meeting with 24-time grand slam champion Djokovic – four years after he won their first in Monte Carlo.

“I think when they do the stats, it has to be over three matches to have a 100 per cent record, so we’ll say I have a decent record,” smiled Evans.

“But five sets are a lot different to three sets, albeit it was a big tournament.”

Now 35, Evans says he is too long in the tooth to be overawed by another of the oldest swingers in town, 38-year-old Djokovic.

“I mean, there is no better place to do it than here,” he added. “I’ve said all along, I would love one more.

“I had some fourth rounds, but my goal was to make the quarters of a grand slam. You don’t always reach your goals, but I still believe I have a shot.

“This is his best surface, I imagine. It’s going to be a tough match. But when I play the top guys, I don’t change much about myself. It’s not about them, it’s about me. We’re both competing for the same goal.

“I’ve got a lot of respect for Novak. He’s a great champion. He’s done wonders for the game. He’s done pretty much everything in the game.

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“But it’s also my chance to win the match. I have to be competitive, I have to play my game, I have to be myself. I can’t go into my shell and have too much respect.

“Of course I’m lucky I’ve been inside the top 50 for X amount of years before that, and I got the experience to play on the big courts.

“Yeah, I am a wild card, but I don’t feel like I’m a wild card playing Novak. I still feel my level’s really good.”

Evans has endured a tough year on the court having slipped down the rankings to outside the top 150.

A calf injury curtailed his season last year and he spoke emotionally earlier in the week about starting to wonder whether the hard work he puts in every day is still worth it.

“Yeah, it’s not that easy,” he added. “The body obviously is getting older, as am I.

“I try the best with the team I have to be able to practice each day. It’s not like this is the end product when you come to the tournament.

“You can’t miss sessions because you just won’t be good enough to win at these tournaments. You have to do the day in, day out stuff.

“Of course it gets harder. Things change a little, as well, in your training. But the last two, three months I’ve done a good job of it.”