Lleyton Hewitt has bowed out of Wimbledon after being defeated by Novak Djokovic in a marathon fourth round match.
Djokovic triumphed in three tie-breakers 7-6 (10-8) 7-6 (7-2) 4-6 7-6 (7-5) in a match lasting three hours and 12 minutes on Court One.
The Serb appeared to be cruising towards a last eight date with Marcos Baghdatis after taking the first two sets.
But a brief rain delay and problems with his back slowed his momentum as Hewitt briefly rallied before succumbing in four sets.
"I fought so hard to get back in a position to give myself another crack at it," said Hewitt referring to winning his previous Wimbledon title in 2002.
"To his credit though, he went for his shots a little bit more when I served up for the fourth set."
"Up until then he was starting to get a little tighter and missing some balls that he hadn't missed, especially in the first two and a half sets."
"I had my opportunity though and I couldn't quite take it."
Djokovic has rated the victory on grass as one of the greatest of his career.
"This is the best match I've ever played on this surface," he said.
"He's probably one of the most difficult players in today's tennis to play against on this surface."
"He has won Wimbledon already. He knows what it feels like to play big matches in front of the full stadium."
"It was one of the best matches in this year's Wimbledon so this win means a lot to me."
Hewitt failed to muster a single point in the Serb's opening four service games but blew three set points before going long to hand his opponent the initiative.
The second set was equally tight and it was a case of deja vu as Djokovic clinched the tie-breaker before Hewitt hit back to take the third after a rain interruption of over two hours.
In the fourth, Hewitt gained the decisive break in the seventh game, confidently whipping a top-spin forehand beyond the Serb before serving out, but Djokovic rallied as well, taking the set to a tie-break which the Serb won 7-5 when Hewitt could only find the net.