by Gaia Piccardi and Sport Editorial Team
First semi-final in Melbourne: Jannik challenges the Serbian number one in the world for a place in the final
Ore 05:57 – Set a Sinner, 6-1 6-2
First moment of difficulty in service for Sinner, who finds himself under 0-30. Then a great first and a forehand at the net by Djokovic bring him to a draw. Novak plays a fantastic corner, but Jannik defends wonderfully to win the first set point. The Serbian comes to the net and cancels it, the South Tyrolean’s first advantage on the serve. But the latter continues to be impeccable and makes him the second set
05.49am – Another break by Sinner, 6-1 5-2
Sinner gets to 0-30 taking advantage of another double fault by Djokovic who makes another mistake with his backhand down the line. In the moment of maximum difficulty Novak clings to the serve and takes the game to the advantage. A forehand error from the Serb grants a new break point to Jannik, who however has to surrender the best point of the match played by his opponent. However, a bad lob forces him into a second break point, on which he makes another mistake
05.44 – Sinner concedes the crumbs on serve, 6-1 4-2
Djokovic tries to accelerate but his long forehand ends up in the net. The cross-court forehand is also wide, with the world number one reaching 23 free errors. Sinner still keeps his innings scoreless
05:42 – Djokovic doesn’t give up, 6-1, 3-2
Really difficult match so far for Djokovic, who however on this round plays a good service game and shortens to 3-2
05.40 – Sinner confirms the break, 6-1 3-1
Sinner makes no mistakes, going twice as fast as Djokovic. Ace in the center, first winner on the outside and another great serve from the blue, who holds his opponent to zero and confirms the break
05.35am – Break by Sinner, 6-1, 2-1
Djokovic misses again with his forehand, Sinner changes the pace with a winning longline and earns two more break points. Jannik only needs one to score the third break of the match
05.29am – Sinner responds present, 6-1 1-1
The tape helps Sinner in the first 15, then another ace (the third) for Jannik, who however has to surrender to a fantastic forehand down the line from Djokovic. From there the blue defends well at the back and with another great first move the score is 1-1
05.26am – Djokovic reacts, 6-1 0-1
After a subdued first set, Djokovic began the second set by holding serve to zero. No points conceded to Sinner, who dominated the first set (15 free errors from the world number one, only 4 from the Azzurri)
05.21am – Sinner wins the first set
Djokovic starts aggressively with a deep return, but then Sinner makes his voice louder with a winning serve and a diagonal backhand. The Serbian shoots out the return and Jannik wins the first set 6-1
05.17am – Sinner breaks again, 5-1
Djokovic starts the game badly, with the second double fault of his match. The Serbian also makes a mistake at the net and Sinner takes the lead to 15-40, taking advantage of the poor first percentage of the world number one, who also fails to attack the blue’s break point. 5-1 Sinner
05:09 – Jannik still ok on serve, 4-1
Diagonal a few centimeters from the sideline, then a long forehand line. Sinner appears really on the ball and starts this game well too. The blue goes to the net and doesn’t miss the volley, except for the rebound which goes into the net at 30-0. Another forehand down the line and the second ace of his match put Jannik up 4-1
05:02 – Djokovic barely saves another break, 3-1
Djokovic tries to react, scoring the first game of his match. But what an effort: Sinner scores, then sends the backhand down the line into the net. From there the blue scores two consecutive points with an acceleration of a cross-court forehand. The blue player earns another break point following an opponent’s error, which extends the game to the advantage. From there a great backhand volley from the Serbian, who sighs
05:01 – Sinner consolidates the break, 3-0
Sinner has been perfect so far, consolidating the break and taking the lead to 3-0. Partial score of 12 points to 4 for Jannik, who also scores the first ace of the day
04:52 – Sinner immediately breaks, 2-0
First a great response from Sinner, then a double fault from Djokovic. Jannik goes to 0-30, then the winning smash from the world number one, who brings himself to parity with a second in the center. The Serbian was surprised by a cross-court backhand from the Italian, who immediately earned a break point, which he realized brilliantly with a sudden change down the line
04.49 am – Sinner starts well, 1-0
Very aggressive exchanges right from the start, but the two already looked like lions in a cage during the warm-up. Djokovic sends a forehand wide and a backhand on the break. Sinner makes him the first game with a winning first.
04.39 am – Players on the pitch
Sinner and Djokovic enter the court to the delight of the audience, who did not leave any seats free. There was so much anticipation for the semi-final that everyone was waiting for. The blue gets there without having lost a single set, on the other hand the Serbian who hasn’t lost in 33 consecutive matches in Australia
04.34 am – Last exercises in the locker room
Both Sinner and Djokovic are completing the final warm-up exercises in the locker room before starting the ones on the court. Concentrated faces, the public meanwhile is filling the stands of the center
04.30 am – Sinner-Djokovic prediction, odds and bets
All of Italy is pushing Jannik Sinner, but he’s also aiming for it. The clear path of the blue in the first five matches played at the Australian Open also convinced bettors: partly out of patriotic spirit, but also seeing Sinner’s performances, the Italians believe in the feat. Not only that of beating Novak Djokovic, but also of reaching the end of the tournament and, in this sense, the elimination of Carlos Alcaraz against Alexander Zverev had a significant impact. According to data collected by Better and Goldbet, as reported by the specialized agency Agipronews, three out of four Italians are banking on Sinner for triumph at the Australian Open. Only 11%, however, see another collector’s item from Djokovic, who starts as favorite in the odds of all bookmakers.
READ the full article HERE.
04.22 – Sinner finds Djokovic again: I believe it
(Gaia Piccardi) And the day came when tennis became an exercise in self-analysis in which Jannik Sinner had to look at himself reflected in Novak Djokovic’s mirror to discover that he had become great. As at Wimbledon, 193 days ago, the semi-final of the Australian Open sets up the most interesting crossroads, Jannik forced to pass through the eye of the Djoker to cut his very personal line of shadow, they change surface (the grass, fast here) and Continent for the clear sense of challenge: the patricide of the old, the source from which the imprinting of the young descends, as a necessary archetype.
READ the full article HERE.
04.12 am – Where to watch Sinner-Djokovic on TV
Sinner-Djokovic is the first semi-final of the men’s singles of the Australian Open, scheduled for 4.30 am on Friday 26 January.
READ HERE where to see it on TV.
January 26, 2024 (modified January 26, 2024 | 06:01)
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2024-01-26 04:30:00
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