E-Paper
Jannik Sinner shocks Novak Djokovic to reach maiden Grand Slam final
Jannik Sinner beat defending champion Novak Djokovic to reach his maiden Grand Slam final at the 2024 Australian Open
After 2,195 days, Novak Djokovic was handed his first loss at the Australian Open, a title that he has won 10 times in his illustrious career, four times consecutively from 2019, as Jannik Sinner scripted one of the biggest wins in his career on Friday afternoon at the Rod Laver Arena.
Turning the much-anticipated semifinal match-up, after his recent wins against the Serb in the final months of 2023, into his own personal showcase, Sinner beat the defending champion 6-1, 6-2, 6-7(6), 6-4 to reach his maiden Grand Slam final at the 2024 Australian Open.
With the win, Sinner became the first Italian male player since the ATP Rankings were published in 1973 to defeat a World No. 1 in a Grand Slam tournament. The streak stood 0-23 before Sinner's magnificent win. At 22 years and 163 days, he also became the youngest men's singles finalist at Melbourne Park since Djokovic in 2008, and the first Italian player ever.
Sinner was rock solid with his heavy powerful groundstrokes, which played a key factor in his run in Melbourne so far, as Djokovic dished out his worst-ever show in the opening two sets, an antithesis to what the 36-year-old has always delivered in matches where the stakes are immense. Djokovic looked a tad bit flat for the better part of the fortnight at the Australian Open, but it has always been his ability to raise his level in the latter stages of the tournament that has defined his career, where he claimed 24 Grand Slam titles. But on Friday, despite a late fightback, Djokovic remained unsuccessful.
Sinner raced through the opening two sets against Djokovic, gaining an early and late break, to take a 2-0 lead in just an hour and 13 minutes. En route, Djokovic incurred a breadstick (6-1), in the opening set, for the first time in his career at the Australian Open since 2013, and fourth overall. The Serb made a comeback on two of those occasions, losing the last in 2005 against Marat Safin, and he looked on course for a third on Friday against Sinner when he fought off a match point in the third-set tie-break after Sinner erred on the forehand at the net, forcing a fourth set. The Italian, who beat him at the Davis Cup and the ATP Tour Finals last year in a space of just one month, quickly regained control in the fourth set, grabbing the early break to take 3-1 lead, before closing out the set comfortably.
The loss for Djokovic ended his 33-match winning streak in Melbourne, which goes back to 2019. The last time he lost at the Australian Open was in the 2018 fourth round, against Chung Hyeon in straight sets.
Sinner will next face the winner of the second semifinal match, between Dannil Medvedev and Alexander Zverev.
