Novak Djokovic withstood his toughest test of this year’s Wimbledon thus far to secure his place in the final as he closes in on a sixth Wimbledon title. 

10th ranked seed Denis Shapovalov posed quite the challenge to the Serbian, who remains hot on the heels of the Grand Slam titles record – held by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, both tied on 20. 

Djokovic currently sits on 19, with nine Australian, three U.S. and two French open titles to go with his five Wimbledon crowns. 

His pursuit of a full calendar of Grand Slams is still on, having already secured the Australian and French titles with the U.S. open still to come later this year. 

Much of the pre-match talk centred around a ‘changing of the guard’ with Federer and Andy Murray already eliminated from proceedings, the latter by Shapovalov himself, while Nadal was unable to play at all this year. 

However, Djokovic showcased he is well worth his number one ranking on Centre Court, navigating himself through troubled waters regularly, saving as many as eight break points mid-way through the second set.