Djokovic-Wawrinka XXVI wasn’t a classic, but it may be a base for better things for both of these veterans in 2022

INTERVIEW: Novak Djokovic after his 6-2, 6-2 win over Stan Wawrinka in Rome

The We Are Tennis feed on Twitter had a question for its followers on Thursday morning:

The tweet was a reference to the upcoming match between Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka in Rome. It would be 26th meeting between the Serb and the Swiss, in a friendly rivalry that dates all the way back to 2006. While Djokovic comfortably led the head-to-head 19-6, the two had staged some of the most memorable matches of the last decade. Among them were Djokovic’s 12-10 fifth-set win at the Australian Open in 2013; Wawrinka’s 9-7 fifth-set turnaround in Melbourne the following year; and his four-set upset of Djokovic in the 2015 Roland Garros final. They also played the title match in Rome in 2008.

Fourteen years later, the two were facing off in the round of 16, and they weren’t quite as evenly matched. While Djokovic is still No. 1 in the world, Wawrinka, at 37, is No. 232, and he was playing just his second tour-level event of 2022. The fact that he had recorded two three-set wins this week, over Reilly Opelka and Laslo Djere, was a good sign for his longterm future in the game, but not a great sign for his immediate future against Djokovic. Wawrinka admitted as much when he responded to We Are Tennis’s tweet above. Was he ready, after two tough wins, to face the world No. 1?

“Nope,” Stan said, with brutal concision.

He was right. From the start, Wawrinka was a step behind. He double faulted twice in the opening game and was broken. He made just 42 percent of his first serves. He won just 33 percent of his second-serve points. He won just 39 percent of all the points played. Wawrinka was largely relegated to blocking and chipping his normally fearsome one-handed backhand, and he struggled to get close to Djokovic’s drop shots.

Nole-Stan XXVI, a 75-minute, 6-2, 6-2 win for the Serb, won’t go down as one of their classic. But Djokovic did play a clean match. Literally: He made no unforced errors. He’ll need to do more to beat Felix Auger Aliassime in the next round, but that’s a solid base of consistency to work from.

Both of these veterans should go on to better things this season: Djokovic back into the later rounds at the Slams, and Wawrinka back to being a regular presence on tour. Stan says he has no plans to retire, and “still has a flame” for competition. Hopefully, he’ll be ready for Nole-Stan XXVII, whenever it comes.