Djokovic reassured: "I don't feel any pain, I'm enjoying myself on the court".

Novak Djokovic is on the verge of succeeding in his improbable gamble. After injuring the meniscus in his right knee in the Round of 16 at Roland Garros and undergoing surgery on June 7, just three weeks ago, the Serb seems to have regained sufficient fitness to be competitive on Wimbledon grass.

He confirmed this further on Friday, winning an exhibition match against Daniil Medvedev (6-3, 6-4). Although his strapped knee gave the impression of preventing him from making completely fluid movements, the current world No.2 still made a strong impression. He reassured everyone of his current abilities, and himself in particular. That's what he told us after the match.

Novak Djokovic: "I can tell you I had a lot of fun today. I can tell you that pain-free tennis is the best way to play tennis. I didn't feel any pain and I'm very happy about that. It was a great test against one of the best players in the world.

I played a few practice sets, but I really wanted to test myself. The test was very conclusive and I'm obviously very happy about it. The three weeks following the operation were intense and I spent a lot of hours in rehab. So I'm trying to take things one day at a time and see where it takes me.

I asked Taylor Fritz for advice. I've asked a lot of athletes (who've had a similar injury to his) - Stan Wawrinka, Lindsey Vonn (skiing), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (soccer) - and they've all been very kind to share their experience and give me contacts of people who could help me."