Novak Djokovic discounted as Wimbledon favourite after surgery by Roger Federer's ex-coach

Novak Djokovic is currently carrying a right knee injury that has cast doubts over his Wimbledon campaign this year. Therefore, according to Roger Federer's former coach Ivan Ljubicic, Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are the favorites for the title over the seven-time champion.

Djokovic's mediocre 2024 season took a turn for the worse at the French Open in early June. The Serb tore the medial meniscus in his right knee during his five-set victory over Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round. He would later withdraw from his quarterfinal match against Casper Ruud.

Novak Djokovic has since undergone a successful knee surgery and has resumed training, albeit while wearing a compression sleeve. While the World No. 2 has yet to confirm whether he will play at Wimbledon in July, his rehabilitation is going well by his own account.

"I can't give many details about the knee, but it's going well. The rehabilitation is going in the right direction every day," he recently disclosed. "Little by little it's getting better. I still have a week ahead of me, enough time. I'm going to do my best to know how I am before the draw is made."

Against that background, former player and Roger Federer's ex-coach Ivan Ljubicic believes that Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz are the more favorable picks for silverware at SW19 than the 24-time Major winner.

"Wimbledon is already around the corner. Sinner and Alcaraz seem to be fine and are the favorites," Ivan Ljubicic told PuntoDeBreak. "Nole has had surgery, but he will try to be present. It would be something very nice. But right now, my favorites are Jannik and Carlitos."

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Ivan Ljubicic: "Before Roland Garros, there were many questions with respect to Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner"

Jannik Sinner won the Halle Open last week and will be the top seed at Wimbledon

Ivan Ljubicic also claimed that there was a wind of change in terms of Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz, and Jannik Sinner's prospects since the French Open, as all three of them were in underwhelming form coming into the tournament.

"Before Roland Garros, there were many questions, especially from a physical point of view with respect to Alcaraz, Sinner, and Djokovic, who were fine but did not have match rhythm. Now everything is different," Ljubicic added.

For what it's worth, Sinner is the most in-form player coming into this year's Wimbledon. The newly-minted World No. 1 put up a gutsy campaign at the recently-concluded Halle Open, overcoming several top-quality opponents to take home his first ATP title on grass.

Alcaraz, on his part, failed to defend his 2023 Queen's Club Championships crown, going out in straight sets to the unseeded Jack Draper in the second round. The Spaniard, who won his third Major title in Paris a few weeks prior, won last year's Wimbledon in emphatic fashion, downing Djokovic in a five-set titanic battle in the final.