Serbian tennis star Novak Djokovic is only two wins away from his first Olympic gold. In the quarterfinals of the singles competition in Paris, the Grand Slam record winner beat Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas 6:3, 7:6 (7:5) and thus once again remained undefeated.
Djokovic was not thrown off by problems with his right knee, which he injured in the same spot at the French Open, or by a 0-4 deficit in the second set. First, the 37-year-old was treated twice on the court, then he fended off three set points at 3-5. In a great atmosphere on the packed Philippe Chatrier Court, Djokovic converted his first match point after 2 hours and 3 minutes.
Semi-final against Musetti
In the semifinals, Djokovic will face Alexander Zverev’s conqueror Lorenzo Musetti from Italy. The second duel will be between Spanish Wimbledon and French Open winner Carlos Alcaraz and Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Looking back at previous Olympic successes
Djokovic won bronze in 2008, but in 2021 he lost in the semifinals to eventual Olympic champion Zverev and finished fourth. “I would most like Novak to win the gold medal, considering his career,” Zverev said on Thursday.
Historic opportunity for Djokovic
With an Olympic victory, Djokovic would be only the second player after Andre Agassi to have achieved all the major individual successes: number one in the world rankings, victories in the four Grand Slam tournaments, victory in the ATP Finals, gold at the Olympics. Roger Federer only won Olympic gold in doubles, Rafael Nadal never won the ATP Finals.
