Djokovic beats Fritz, will play Sinner in semifinals

MELBOURNE, Australia — Nobody has ever been better at this end of the Australian Open than Novak Djokovic, the 10-time champion.

Every time he’s won a quarterfinal at Melbourne Park — as he did against Taylor Fritz on Tuesday — he’s gone on to win the title.

The odds are usually stacked against his semifinal rival. Perhaps even more so against fourthseeded Jannik Sinner, who won a quarterfinal over No. 5 Andrey Rublev that didn’t start until 10:42 p.m. and didn’t finish until 1:21 a.m. Wednesday.

Djokovic reached his record-extending 48th Grand Slam semifinal by beating Fritz 7-6 (3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 in 33⁄4 hours. Their match started late in the heat of the afternoon because U.S. Open champion Coco

Gauff ’s preceding win over Marta Kostyuk took more than three hours.

In an on-court interview with Australian player Nick Kyrgios, who has been sidelined by a longterm injury, Djokovic made a lighthearted joke about getting popcorn and watching Sinner vs. Rublev on late-night TV.

Later, Djokovic said Sinner’s late finish wouldn’t be a factor in Friday’s semifinals.

“What kind of advantage will I have? We have two days. It’s not much of an advantage that I see there,” he said. “Plenty of time for whoever wins that match tonight to recover.”

The start of the night session was pushed back past 9 p.m. and could have gone very, very late if not for women’s champion Aryna Sabalenka and Sinner both winning in straight sets.

Sinner was down 5-1 in the second-set tiebreaker before winning 6 straight points, starting with a stunning cross-court forehand, to turn momentum and take the match 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-3.

“I want to thank everyone for staying so long,” Sinner said in his on-court interview. “It’s always a huge pleasure to play here on this court. It doesn’t really matter the time.”

Since losing to Djokovic in last year’s Wimbledon semifinals, Sinner has won two of his three matches against the 24-time major champion.

“I’m really lucky to face him again (in) one of the biggest tournaments in the world,” he said.

Sinner hasn’t dropped a set yet.

Djokovic, meanwhile, has spent more time on court through five rounds than ever at Melbourne Park — more than 15 hours — but thinks he’s still building into it.