Updated Tuesday, January 23, 2024 – 12:22
With the strong heat as a guest for the first time in the tournament, the Serbian Novak Djokovic (1st) defeated the American this Tuesday Taylor Fritz (12th) to secure a place in the semifinals of the Australian Openwhere he aspires to win his 25º Grand Slam.
The world number one suffered in Melbourne but ended up winning 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 6-2 and 6-3 to reach his 11th semi-final of the first major of the year48 in ‘Grand Slam’ tournaments.
His rival will be the winner of the duel between the Italian Jannik Sinner (4th) and Russian Andrey Rublev (5th), who also face each other this Tuesday.
“I suffered a lot during the first two sets, I was suffocating from the back of the court, he was on my heels in every rally, and it was also very hot. Physically it was very hard, emotionally too,” Djokovic told Nick Kyrgioswho interviewed him at the Rod Laver Arena.
During two sets, the first lasting an hour and a half, on a day of sun and high temperatures for the first time in the fortnight, Djokovic and Fritz transferred equality on the court to the scoreboard.
Only the first game offered the tone of what was to come: 16 minutes and 25 seconds, with Fritz saving three breaking balls.
He 26 year old American He continued to survive on the wire, beating another five break points in the following games, until he had two set points at 6-5, but Djokovic defended his serve and took the lead to a tie-break, in which razed.
Unable to break Fritz’s serve, Djokovic – 0 of 15 in breaks converted in the first two sets! – paid for an early break with the set.
At that moment the tennis players had been on the court for almost two and a half hours. The afternoon was falling in Melbourne and the temperature dropped, which helped Djokovic to recover and finally score his first break, in the 160th minute of the match. It was the turning point to achieve victory in 3h45 min.
Djokovic, who is seeking his 25th Grand Slam in Melbourne, the 11th title in Australia, is not experiencing the calmest tournament: In three games a set has been dropped and two of its five rounds have exceeded three and a half hours.
But he is already in the semifinals. So far, in eleven appearances, he is undefeated in the penultimate round, as well as in the final of his favorite tournament.
2024-01-23 11:22:34
#Australian #Open #Djokovic #overcomes #Fritz #heat #advance #semifinals #Australia
