Novak Djokovic vs. Sam Querrey: Score and Reaction from 2016 Wimbledon

For the first time since last year's French Open, Novak Djokovic will not win a Grand Slam title, as Sam Querrey defeated the world's top-ranked player 7-6, 6-1, 3-6, 7-6 in the third round at Wimbledon.

Rain came at an ideal time for the 12-time Grand Slam champion Friday. Querrey, who is the No. 28 seed at SW19, performed superbly before play was called off, serving with venom and putting Djokovic under pressure.

Picking up Saturday after rain forced them off the court Friday, Djokovic appeared to find his bearings by winning the third set. It looked like yet another instance when he would find a way out of a mess. However, the Serb didn't have enough, and Querrey battled to seal the victory after a fourth-set tiebreak. 

From the off on Friday, it was clear Querrey was on. He was giving nothing up on his serve, and the defending champion was forced to save four break points.

It was a sign of things to come in the tiebreaker, as the American continued to pounce on Djokovic's serve. He carved out two set points, which the top seed saved. But Querrey wouldn't be denied, eventually taking the first set 7-6 (6).

As Stuart Fraser of the MailOnline noted, it's rare to see Djokovic relinquish a set so early in a marquee tournament:

It's rare to see the Serb so vulnerable, too. And to his credit, Querrey continued to smother his opponent and put his ropey serve to the test.

When the American broke early in the second stanza, the upset alarm was primed. When he broke for a second time to go 5-1 ahead, it was wailing. Djokovic was stunned, out of sorts, and Querrey, who was serving efficiently and putting together some brilliant shot-making, closed out the set 6-1.

At this point, the Serb would have been delighted to look up and see the heavens open on No. 1 Court, grinding play to a halt.

BBC Sport's David Law was searching for omens for the defending champion:

The tournament's official Twitter feed noted Djokovic does have previous form when it comes to recovering from two sets down:

We're so used to seeing Djokovic look untouchable at this stage of a tournament, so the manner in which he toiled was surprising.

Christopher Clarey of the New York Times noted that any weather conspiracy theorists out there may not comprehend how the sport of tennis works:

Djokovic came out on Saturday to claim the third set, with many expecting the world No. 1 to go on to win the match after his upturn in fortunes. 

However, Querrey continued to bring the fight in an intense fourth set that he eventually won in a tiebreak. There were multiple short rain delays again Saturday, though the weather did not deter the 28-year-old American from getting the biggest win of his career.

ESPN Tennis provided the two-day timeline of events that eventually led to Querrey's victory:

"

Djokovic vs Querrey
FRI
6:45 Begins
8:02 Suspended
SAT
12:09 Resumes
12:26 Suspended
2:22 Resumes
2:47 Suspended
2:56 Resumes
3:49 Suspended

— ESPNTennis (@ESPNTennis) July 2, 2016"

In addition to being Querrey's biggest win, this is a monumental moment for American tennis. LZ Granderson of ESPN explained:

Djokovic's loss snaps his streak of 30 consecutive Grand Slam matches won, the third-longest in men's history, per ESPN Stats & Info.

With Djokovic out, Wimbledon has suddenly opened up for the rest of the field. Roger Federer will be the sentimental favourite, but there's going to be plenty of stiff competition. The last time Djokovic didn't win the event was in 2013, when Andy Murray captured victory.

Querrey's next step will be making sure this win wasn't a fluke by extending his run. He's only been this far at Wimbledon one other time, in 2010, but the spotlight on him has never been brighter than it is right now.

Post-Match Reaction

Even though this wasn't the outcome Djokovic was hoping for, he put a positive, big-picture spin on things to reporters after the match, via TennisHead.net:

"

I managed to win four Grand Slams in a row ‑ two different seasons, though. I want to try to focus on that rather than on failure.

It's an amazing feeling to be able to hold four Grand Slams at the same time. Coming into Wimbledon, I knew that mentally it's not going to be easy to kind of remotivate myself. But the importance of this tournament is so immense that you always find ways to really get inspired and prepare and try to give your best. Obviously my best wasn't enough this year.

"

All the focus in these instances usually goes to the star player who lost, but Djokovic made sure to credit Querrey, via ESPN.com: "Congratulation to Sam. He played a terrific match. He serves very well, as he usually does. I think that part of his game was brutal today. He made a lot of free points with the first serve. Just well done. He just overpowered me."

Querrey did not take this opportunity to get cocky, telling reporters that "sometimes a blind squirrel finds a nut," via Gigi Salmon of BBC Sport.

Speaking on BBC television (via Tom Perrotta of the Wall Street Journal), Querrey was in such a euphoric state that he's "not even sure who I play next. I'm just going to be happy with this."

For the record, Querrey will play Nicolas Mahut in the fourth round. There's no rest for the weary at Wimbledon, especially with matches taking place on Sunday due to the bad weather conditions that caused delays Friday.