WIMBLEDON -- The "whap" of the ball striking the net tape and falling back was painful enough, seeming to echo in the silence of Centre Court before the umpire called, "Game, Djokovic." But the really unnerving thing was the murmur from within the crowd that gradually grew louder, posing an uncomfortable question that couldn't be ignored.

If Kevin Anderson, whose greatest weapon is his serve, couldn't hold his very first service game, what could he do to compete against the best returner in the game in Sunday's Wimbledon men's final? The answer was implicit in Novak Djokovic's tidy, 2-hour, 19-minute deconstruction of Anderson's big game: not much.

Before his 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (3) loss Sunday, Anderson had played over 21 hours of tennis at this tournament, including over six and a half in his record-breaking semifinal win against American John Isner. Anderson's legs were not ready; neither was his mind.

"The way the ball was coming off my racquet, sort of the quality of my footwork, my ball striking wasn't where it needed to be to compete with somebody like Novak," Anderson said afterward. "That's tough. It's tough being out there at that stage knowing you're not playing the kind of tennis you want to play."

The six other men Djokovic beat en route to the Wimbledon final -- and, again, at the very top of the game -- might have expressed similar sentiments. The larger question looming behind Djokovic's accomplishment is: Will he be satisfied with emerging from his slump and re-establishing his Big Four credentials, or will he mount another campaign to dominate the way he did during those halcyon days between 2013 and 2016?

"I understand that people are questioning whether I can consistently play on this level. Trust me, I am, too," Djokovic said in his postmatch news conference, a smile slowly spreading across his gaunt face. "At the same time, I can't look too far down the road because I have to embrace and cherish this kind of accomplishment."

Take that as a provisional "yes." At 31, Djokovic is the youngest of the Big Four. True, this was only his 13th Grand Slam title (Rafael Nadal has 17, Roger Federer 20), yet Djokovic has a winning record against both (27-25 versus Nadal, 23-22 against Federer) and has routinely crushed the fourth member of the Big Four, Andy Murray (25-11). Still, Djokovic isn't really spoken of in the same reverential tones as Federer or Nadal.

"Everyone loves Roger and Rafa; Novak is respected," Boris Becker, who coached Djokovic through his recent dominant period, said during his BBC broadcast of the final. "It's something that bothers him, but that love is something you can't buy. He takes it personal, because that's his character. He's very sensitive."

Djokovic might eventually belt his way to earn that love now that his game is back on track. It couldn't have happened at a better time, or in a more appropriate place.