Novak Djokovic and Lionel Messi are in an exclusive club of sporting greatness as they continue to shine at Wimbledon and the World Cup, according to Andy Dunn in his opinion piece for the Express.
Djokovic's Witty Acknowledgment
When Novak Djokovic was told Lionel Messi had been pivotal to one of the great World Cup comebacks while the 24-time Grand Slam champion was on Centre Court, he had a dry reply. “It would be nice to play 90 minutes like him,” smiled Djokovic after the longest quarter-final match in Wimbledon history. For a lot of the five hours and 15 minutes against Felix Auger-Aliassime, Djokovic was on the go. In Argentina’s dramatic win over Egypt, Messi carefully chose his moments to get involved, as Messi does.
Twinned by Greatness
At the age of 39, Djokovic and Messi are separated by 33 days but are twinned by greatness. They are twinned by their indefatigability, by their physical resilience, by their mental strength, by their adaptability. Somehow, they have found a way to maintain rarefied standards, like basketball’s LeBron James and American football’s Tom Brady did. They have adapted.
Earlier at these Championships, Djokovic said: “I love watching greatness in the making and continuing the evolution of greatness, like Messi, like LeBron James. It’s amazing to see. I feel like we are all setting the bar higher and moving the needle of what people thought is possible in terms of level of competition and level of performance at a late age.”
Sustained Excellence Over Years
What is remarkable is that people were saying the same thing about Messi and Djokovic three and four years ago. They were saying it when Messi carried Argentina to World Cup glory in late 2022. They were saying it at the end of 2023 after Djokovic had won three Grand Slams that year and was a beaten finalist at Wimbledon. Yet in 2026, Messi and Djokovic are still performing to a world-class standard.
Remember, Messi made his competitive senior debut in 2004 — for Barcelona in La Liga — which was the year Djokovic played in his first event on the ATP Tour, the Croatian Open. They are not rolling back the years because the years have never caught up with them. In the long run-up to the World Cup, there was a modicum of doubt about Messi’s involvement, but it should never have been in doubt. Messi likes nothing more than proving himself on the grandest stage.
Djokovic's Historic Wimbledon Run
Djokovic stormed into the Wimbledon semi-finals on Tuesday night, facing Jannik Sinner for a place in the final. The seven-time Wimbledon champion will be playing in his 55th Grand Slam semi-final, extending his all-time record. His all-time record of most Wimbledon singles match wins now stands at 107. He is the oldest player to reach a men’s singles semi-final since Ken Rosewall made the last four in 1974.
“Another great, historic run for me at the Grand Slams,” said Djokovic. “This is what counts the most, honestly. I still try to prove to myself and to others that I am able to compete with the best players in the world and beat them on the biggest stage.” That is what Djokovic will have to do again if he is to win that record 25th Grand Slam title, that is what Messi will have to do if he is to lead Argentina to more World Cup glory. Don’t put it past them.
“Messi was born the same year I was born, ’87,” Djokovic said. “It was a good year to be born.” It was, indeed. A good year for tennis, a good year for football, a good year for sport.
