Novak Djokovic will play his first outdoor match of this year's Wimbledon on day five, after organisers scheduled his third-round clash against Arthur Rinderknech for Centre Court daytime without the roof. The Serbian star had expressed his desire for an outdoor match after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in straight sets under the roof earlier this week.
Djokovic Gets His Wish for Outdoor Tennis
Djokovic said after his second-round win: "Overall, nice to be playing another indoor Wimbledon match I guess. I'm looking forward to an outdoor hopefully next round!" In his post-match press conference, he added: "It's just my desire. I'd love to play outdoor Wimbledon grass court match. Haven't had a chance so far. So let's see." The organisers have obliged, scheduling his match against world No. 81 Arthur Rinderknech for Friday afternoon without the roof. This will be the first meeting between Djokovic and the Frenchman. If Djokovic wins, he will set up a blockbuster fourth-round clash with Joao Fonseca, the man who defeated him at the French Open.
Serena Williams Doubts Persist After Injury
Serena Williams lost her singles comeback match to Maya Joint and was due to partner her sister Venus in the women's doubles. The Williams sisters are scheduled to face Solana Sierra and Camila Osorio. However, the match has been pushed back to Saturday to give Serena more time to recover from a knee injury sustained during her two-and-a-half-hour singles battle. The 44-year-old American and her sister have won 14 doubles Grand Slam titles together, including six at Wimbledon. Fans hope the extra recovery time will allow them to take the court.
Top Seeds Sinner and Sabalenka in Action
Men's top seed and defending champion Jannik Sinner faces Jenson Brooksby on Court 1 as a heavy favourite. Sinner said pre-match: "It's going to be a very tough match. I'm looking forward to it. I'm happy to face him." He has only dropped five sets across his last eight matches at Wimbledon. Brooksby's fellow American Taylor Fritz commented on the match-up: "He's a very, like, unorthodox player. The match [we played] in Tokyo, I was really impressed with just, like, his level. I felt like he was doing an unbelievable job of handling my pace. I think if he handles it the way he was dealing with what I was doing in Tokyo, then I think from the ground it will actually be interesting. We'll have to see. I don't know how much the grass is helping his serve, but I think that's going to be where the match is won or lost. Jannik has improved his serve so much over the last couple of years. He's a very, very good server. Now it's going to be tough to break him." Women's top seed Aryna Sabalenka takes on former French Open winner and Wimbledon semi-finalist Jelena Ostapenko. Ostapenko won their last meeting in the Stuttgart final last year, making that match more competitive.
Potential Blockbuster Sunday Ahead
Friday's results could set up an extraordinary Sunday schedule. If all top seeds win, the fourth-round matches would include Djokovic vs Fonseca, Sinner vs Rafael Jodar, Sabalenka vs Naomi Osaka, and Belinda Bencic vs Coco Gauff. That day also features the British Grand Prix and Mexico vs England in the World Cup round of 16.
Five Must-Watch Matches on Day Five
- [11] Belinda Bencic vs [19] Anna Kalinskaya
- [1] Aryna Sabalenka vs Jelena Ostapenko
- [25] Arthur Rinderknech vs [7] Novak Djokovic
- Roman Safiullin vs [24] Joao Fonseca
- Hubert Hurkacz vs [21] Tommy Paul
Express Sport has reporters on the ground covering every moment of the 2026 Championships.
