Australian Open: Sinner Stuns Djokovic To Reach Final
Italian tennis sensation Jannik Sinner stunned defending champion Novak Djokovic 6-1 6-2 6-7(6) 6-3 at the Australian Open on Friday to hand the top seed a first defeat at his Melbourne Park fortress in six years and power into his maiden Grand Slam final.
Fourth seed Sinner stunned Djokovic twice in three matches at the end of last season and he made a brilliant start on Rod Laver Arena, targeting his 36-year-old opponent’s shaky serve and error-prone backhand to comfortably win the opening set.
Djokovic had not lost at his favourite stomping ground since the 2018 edition when he crashed to South Korean Chung Hyeon and there were worrying signs for the 10-time Melbourne champion as the 22-year-old Sinner eased through the next on a double break.
Sinner showed no signs of subsiding in the third set, but Djokovic raised his game to stay firm until the tiebreak where the Italian squandered a match point at 6-5 by hitting a forehand into the net to give his opponent a lifeline.
Djokovic claimed the next three points to pull a set back to draw loud cheers, but Sinner broke for a 3-1 lead in the fourth set and ran away with the match to snap the Serb’s 33-match winning run at Melbourne Park and end his quest for a record 25th major.
Sinner’s masterclass in the opening two sets set the wheels in motion for Djokovic’s only defeat in the semi-finals of his favourite major. The youngster also became the first Italian player to reach an Australian Open singles final.
Scintillating Sinner 🇮🇹🔥
He achieves the impossible defeating 10x #AusOpen champion Djokovic 6-1 6-2 6-7(6) 6-3.@janniksin • #AO2024 • @wwos • @espn • @eurosport • @wowowtennis@Kia_Worldwide • #Kia • #MakeYourMove pic.twitter.com/X6qFAtegq7
— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 26, 2024
“It was a very, very tough match,” said Sinner, who did not face a single break point in the match. “I started out very well, for two sets I felt that he was not feeling too good on court so I just tried to keep pushing.”
“And then in the third set I had match point and I missed the forehand, but you know, this is tennis. I just tried to be ready for the next set, which I started off really well, and of course the atmosphere was so great. It’s so great to play here.”
Victory meant that Sinner has now defeated Djokovic at the ATP Finals, the Davis Cup and the Grand Slam stage.
“I was looking forward to this match, it’s always nice to have this kind of player where you can learn from,” Sinner added. “I lost (to him) last year in the semis at Wimbledon, I learned a lot from that and it’s all part of the process.
“I have the belief that I can play the best players in the world. On Sunday, I’m in my first final. Let’s see how it goes. But I’m really happy, I’ll come here with a smile and I’ll try my best.”
Sinner will face either Daniil Medvedev or Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s Australian Open final.
