Nothing new, Djokovic in semis
MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) – Novak Djokovic held off Taylor Fritz 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in three and 3/4 hours to reach the Australian Open semifinals for the 11th time on Tuesday.
When he gets through the quarterfinals in Australia, Djokovic is unbeaten.
The 24-time major champion has won all 10 semifinals he’s contested at Melbourne Park, and all 10 finals. In his recordextending 48th Grand Slam semifinal, he’ll play No. 4-seeded Jannik Sinner or No. 5 Andrey Rublev.
Fritz saved the first 15 breakpoints he faced, an unheard of stat against one of the best returners ever.
“We all know Taylor has got one of the best serves in the world,” Djokovic said. “I knew the kind of threat he poses when he serves on such a high quality.
“My conversion was really poor but in the end of the day, I managed to break him when it mattered. I upped my game midway through the third set, all the way to the end.”
The first game set the tone for a long, tough match. It lasted 16 minutes and contained 24 points, going to deuce nine times. Fritz fended off three breakpoints before finally holding.
The first set lasted an hour, 24 minutes – the longest opening set of the tournament – and was in the balance until the tiebreaker.
The match started in bright sunlight and almost 32-degree (90 Fahrenheit) heat, and the shade moved from west to east across the court from behind the umpire’s chair.
After Fritz held in the 11th game, Djokovic was agitated and gesturing to get the attention of his support team, calling for salts.
The first of the men’s quarterfinals started in the late afternoon after US Open champion Coco Gauff’s three-hour 7-6 (6), 6-7 (3), 6-2 win over Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine.
The 19-year-old Gauff, on a 12-match winning streak in Grand Slams, will next play defending champion Aryna Sabalenka or Barbora Krejcikova.