Djokovic to face Zverev in semis

TOKYO. — Novak Djokovic said he is “getting better and better” after easing into the Tokyo Olympics men’s tennis semi-finals yesterday with a straight-sets thrashing of Japanese hope Kei Nishikori.

The world number one, chasing a calendar Golden Grand Slam, ended home interest in the tennis with a ruthless 6-2, 6-0 victory in only 70 minutes.

In today’s semi-finals Djokovic will face German fourth seed Alexander Zverev who booked a semi-final date with Golden Slam-chasing Serb Djokovic at the Olympics by seeing off France’s Jeremy Chardy yesterday.

Zverev, the second highest-ranked player left in the competition after Daniil Medvedev’s exit, swatted aside Chardy 6-4, 6-1 in their last-eight match.

He will face world No .1 Djokovic in the semis today, looking to end a five-match losing streak against the 20-time major champion.

Zverev, last year’s US Open runner-up, smashed 11 aces past Chardy as he moved within one win of an Olympic medal.

Djokovic has never won the Olympic singles title, with a bronze medal in 2008 his best result at the Games.

“I’m very happy, my best performance in the tournament,” said the top seed.

“Matches are not getting easier, but my level of tennis is getting better and better.

“I’ve done that many, many times in my career. I know that I’m (the) kind of player that the further the tournament goes, the better I’m feeling on the court.”

The 34-year-old Serb, who has already captured the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon titles this season, was never in trouble against Nishikori, who made 16 unforced errors.

It was also the second match on the centre court at the Ariake Tennis Park, after the women’s semi-final between Belinda Bencic and Elena Rybakina lasted almost three hours in the still suffocating heat.

“It was fantastic. Playing after five (pm) is completely different,” said Djokovic.

“Obviously, there is a little bit of a breeze, but still very, very humid, you sweat a lot, but you don’t have the heat, you don’t have the sun that, in combination with the humidity, is just brutal.”