Wimbledon 2015: Top 5 Upsets in Men’s Draw

Jul 6, 2015; London, United Kingdom; Kevin Anderson (RSA) reacts during his match against Novak Djokovic (SRB) on day seven of The Championships Wimbledon at the AELTC. Mandatory Credit: Susan Mullane-USA TODAY Sports

Bonus – Upset That Could Have Been

Fourth Round

Novak Djokovic [1] v Kevin Anderson [14]

Had Kevin Anderson held his nerve he may well have been at the top of this list. Novak Djokovic rarely loses in the early rounds of majors, in fact he rarely loses in general, registering only three defeats so far in 2015. However, he was put to the sword for two sets against the big serving South African.

There were too stand out spells in the match where Anderson looked like he was capable of pulling off the upset and dumping out the top seed. After closing out the second set on a tie break, hauling the momentum in his favour, it looked like he could blow away Djokovic in straight sets.

However, Djokovic has a reputation built on steel and staying power. The Serbian went it to a mindset of simply not missing, cutting out the errors and Anderson ran out of steam. Djokovic cruised through the next two sets, weathering the first storm before bad light stopped play.

The next day would be a one day shoot out and presented Anderson with the second huge opportunity to spring a surprise. Djokovic came out irritated, whereas Anderson was back to swinging freely. He just couldn’t capitalise, despite forcing a couple of 0-30 situations when returning.

Once again, Djokovic fought back from the bring. Anderson, who does have a reputation for folding in big pressure situations, contributed to his own downfall with consecutive double faults at the tail end of the fifth set. He was subsequently broken, which when followed by a hold from Djokovic, ended the dreams of a huge upset.

Score: 7-6(6) 7-6(6) 1-6 4-6 5-7

Next: Upset Number 2