LONDON (AFP) - Novak Djokovic was teetering on the brink of a stunning Wimbledon exit when rain and bad light forced play to be abandoned for the day with the defending champion trailing by two sets against Sam Querrey.

Djokovic, who holds all four Grand Slam titles at present, was 7-6 (8/6), 6-1 down on Friday when he retreated to the locker room facing his earliest Wimbledon exit since a second round loss in 2008.

Djokovic is bidding for a third successive Wimbledon title and a rare calendar Grand Slam, but the world number one may have been spared one of the most embarrassing defeats of his glittering career by the bad weather on Court One.

The 29-year-old Serb had been made to wait around all day by the dismal drizzle in south-west London before finally getting on court for his third round tie and when he did he looked completely out of sorts against American 28th seed Querrey, Djokovic has made at least the quarter-finals on his last seven visits to Wimbledon since losing to Marat Safin in the second round eight years ago.

He has also made the last eight of each of the last 28 Grand Slams since losing to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the third round of the 2009 French Open.