Novak Djokovic ready to 'peak' at Wimbledon as Roger Federer aims to build momentum

Defending champion and top seed is the firm favourite to win a third successive Grand Slam

Novak Djokovic takes part in a practice session at the All England Tennis Club ahead of the start of the Wimbledon Championships. AFP

Novak Djokovic would have been favourite for the 2021 Wimbledon title regardless, but with two of his traditionally biggest rivals still feeling their way back from long-term injuries and the third absent, the defending champion appears to have an even more direct route to his 20th Grand Slam trophy.

The world No 1 is aiming for a third successive Wimbledon title – and sixth overall – when he gets his campaign under way on Monday against British teenage wildcard Jack Draper.

Djokovic's chief challenges at the All England Club have in the past come from record eight-time champion Roger Federer and two-time winners Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.

Federer, 39, has only played a handful of matches since twice undergoing knee surgery, while 34-year-old Murray's continued fitness struggles regarding his hip have been well-documented. Nadal, meanwhile, has opted to skip Wimbledon following his French Open semi-final defeat to Djokovic earlier this month.

It may then fall on the raft of younger contenders – including world No 2 Daniil Medvedev, French Open finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas, and sixth-ranked Alexander Zverev – to prevent Djokovic from moving level with Federer and Nadal on 20 major titles.

Ominously for the men's draw, though, Djokovic has warned that he is ready to peak at Wimbledon, having made the decision to be more selective with his schedule in order to be at his best for the majors.

"Grand Slams are the biggest motivation I have right now at this stage of my career... I want to try to make the most out of Grand Slams as I possibly can. I'm trying to peak at the majors," said Djokovic, who is aiming to add a third major title of the season following wins at the Australian Open and Roland Garros.

"Nowadays I have to adjust my schedule a bit more with the quality time with family, reducing the number of tournaments, trying to adjust everything so that I could be at my top level on slams.

"That's how my last year and a half looked like, and that's how probably the rest of my career will look like in terms of scheduling the tournaments."

Djokovic's 2019 Wimbledon triumph was achieved after an extraordinary final, with the Serb beating Federer 13-12 in the fifth set.

Federer returns to the grass court Grand Slam under considerably lower external expectations given his limited time on court this season and second round exit in the tune-up event in Halle, where he is an 11-time champion.

However, the Swiss is confident that if he can build some momentum, he can be in the title picture.

"I think I got to take the positives out of these last few weeks that I'm actually here at Wimbledon right now and I have a chance," said Federer, whose eight Wimbledon titles make him the tournament's greatest ever male player.

"I know if I get rolling, I get into the second week, which is the goal here right now, that I get stronger and stronger as every match goes by, I believe it's very much possible.

"I come here feeling mentally strong rather with the last set I played in Halle, which was clearly not the standard I like."