LONDON -- Novak Djokovic was pushed to five sets by No. 3 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime before the seven-time Wimbledon champion prevailed 7-6 (10), 3-6, 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (4) after more than five hours on Tuesday to set up a semifinal against defending champion Jannik Sinner.
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 after 5 hours, 15 minutes -- and just before the All England Club's 11 p.m. curfew took effect. It was the longest quarterfinal in Wimbledon history, the tournament said.
To celebrate, Djokovic raised his arms high and wide and took in the applause as he walked to the net to shake hands with Auger-Aliassime. Then Djokovic performed a little elbows-to-knees dance. He often mentions that his daughter tries to teach him moves.