Auger-Aliassime loses five-set marathon to Djokovic at Wimbledon quarterfinals

Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada celebrates winning the fourth set against Novak Djokovic of Serbia in their quarterfinal men's singles match at the Wimbledon Tennis Championships in London, Tuesday, July 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Maja Smiejkowska)

LONDON — A valiant effort from Canadian tennis star Félix Auger-Aliassime wasn't enough to get him into the Wimbledon semifinals for the first time.

Auger-Aliassime fell 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) in a match that took five hours 15 minutes to complete.

Auger-Aliassime, the third seed from Montreal, had 29 aces and won 80 per cent of first serve points.

However, he hit into 61 unforced errors, compared to 47 for seventh-seeded Djokovic.

Both players were broken just twice in the match, though Djokovic had 13 break point chances compared to four for Auger-Aliassime.

Djokovic increased his Wimbledon men's singles win record with his 107th match victory at the All England Club. He passed Roger Federer's mark with a win Sunday in the round of 16.

“It was really anybody’s game in the super tiebreak in the fifth,” said the 39-year-old Djokovic, who will face a tough semifinal opponent as he seeks to equal Federer's record of eight Wimbledon men's titles. He next meets top seed and defending champion Jannik Sinner, who had an easier route to the final four with a three-set win over Germany's Jan-Lennard Struff earlier Tuesday.

“We know, because we’ve seen him so much, but it’s so impressive that he does it time and time again,” Auger-Aliassime said after the tough match.

Auger-Aliassime equalled his previous best performance at Wimbledon when he advanced to the 2021 quarterfinals before losing to Matteo Berrettini.

But he has largely struggled at the grass-court Grand Slam, entering this year's tournament with a 7-6 all-time record.

Auger-Aliassime entered the tournament with a career-high world ranking of No. 4, but might not leave London with it. Djokovic, Italy's Flavio Cobolli and American Taylor Fritz can all surpass the Canadian depending on how far they go at Wimbledon.

Earlier, Ottawa's Gabriela Dabrowski and partner Luisa Stefani of Brazil advanced to the women's doubles quarterfinals with a 6-1, 6-4 win over Storm Hunter of Australia and Caty McNally of the United States,

Dabrowski and Stefani were strong on serve in their round of 16 match, winning 67 per cent of first serve points and 77 per cent on second serve.

The second seeds will next face Poland's Katarzina Piter and Anna Siskova of Czechia.

When a forehand from Auger-Aliassime sailed wide after a long rally to give Djokovic a 9-4 lead in the final-set tiebreaker, both players leaned on their rackets in exhaustion. Djokovic, while he was leaning over, still found energy to encourage the crowd to cheer louder, waving his racket for more noise.

Then on his first match point, a big forehand from Djokovic led to another error from his 25-year-old Canadian opponent to end it just before the All England Club's 11 p.m. GMT curfew took effect.

In the first set, Djokovic dealt with what appeared to be a lower-leg issue. He grimaced during the ninth game, which he held to love for a 5-4 lead. Then he was treated by a trainer on the ensuing changeover and took a medical time out. The trainer tested the stability of his left ankle and calf before massaging Djokovic’s calf muscle.

Djokovic had earlier leaned over to stretch his leg by pulling back the tip of his sneaker. He also stretched while standing at the back wall.

There was more stretching the rest of the way, too — especially late in the fifth set.

Djokovic objected to the decision to close the Centre Court roof at 7:40 p.m. after Auger-Aliassime won the second set to even the match at a set apiece.

Djokovic told Wimbledon tournament referee Denise Parnell that they could squeeze in another set before the natural light fades.

“We can play a whole another set outdoors. We’re an outdoor tournament,” Djokovic said. “You remember the first round? You didn’t close it until like 8:20, 8:30 and now you want to close it at 7:40. Where’s the consistency?

“You’re so proud of your rules and you’re not sticking to any kind of rules,” Djokovic added.

— With files from The Associated Press.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 7, 2026.

The Canadian Press