Tennis fans got the perfect insight into Novak Djokovic's character when he lent his support to Alex de Minaur last year. The two tennis stars were set to battle each other in the quarter-finals of Wimbledon in 2024. However, De Minaur suffered a hip injury in his victory against Arthur Fils and was forced to withdraw from the clash against the Serbian. A disheartened De Minaur faced the press to withdraw, missing the Grand Slam and subsequently the Paris Olympics. Though his retirement ensured Djokovic moved into the semi-finals without breaking a sweat, the Serbian showed his class by offering his condolences to the Australian, whom he faces in the last-16 of this year's Wimbledon on Monday. Speaking to Tennis Channel, Djokovic said: "I'm excited to be in another semi-finals. Obviously [De Minaur's injury is] not great for the tournament. It's never great to go through with a withdrawal of a player. "I wish Alex the best in terms of recovery. I hope he can come back to the court. We saw that in the last point actually he injured himself. "I was watching the replay of that point of his last match to try and understand where he injured himself. Some people were guessing whether it was an ankle, or hip or knee. I think in the end it was a hip. "It's terrible. The biggest enemy of an athlete is injury. I wish him a speedy recovery. He was playing in red-hot form. It would've been a really tough match for both of us if we were playing today but it is what it is. I'm moving on to the semis." Fast forward a year later, Djokovic and De Minaur were drawn to face each other in the Round of 16. The latter has had a strong run so far, defeating Roberto Carballes Baena, Arthure Cazaux and August Holmgren in his first three matches. However, facing Djokovic is his ultimate challenge, just as it would have been last year if he did not injure his hip. Ahead of the game, the Serbian showed his respect for Di Minaur again, making it clear that he will not be taking the 11th seed lightly. Djokovic said: "Alex has also improved his game tremendously in the last couple years. He's playing the tennis of his life. He's definitely knocking on the door of the final stages of grand slams. "He's gotten to the quarters several times (and) last year had to pull out unfortunately because of his injury. This year again he's there. He's playing well. "(I'm) not super excited to play Alex De Minaur on grass, that's for sure, because he's so quick and he's a complete player all around. He has gained pace on his serve, as well. He hits his spots very well." Djokovic is looking to reach his seventh consecutive Wimbledon final and avenge the two losses he has suffered at the hands of Carlos Alcaraz in 2023 and 2024. A triumph in the Grand Slam will see him equal Roger Federer's record of eight titles in the Grand Slam and overtake Margaret Court's record of 24 Grand Slam titles.