Jannik Sinner will face defending champion Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final after a ruthless demolition of Novak Djokovic’s latest bid for a record 25th Grand Slam title.
Djokovic, 38, was left reflecting on how age was catching up with him after a humbling 6-3 6-3 6-4 defeat by a man who plays uncannily like the seven-time champion in his prime.
Sinner’s victory put him into a first Wimbledon final and set up a re-match of last month’s epic French Open showpiece, where he lost in five sets to Alcaraz having led by two sets and seen three championship points saved.
At least one of Sinner and Alcaraz have contested the men’s singles final at the last six Grand Slam tournaments, while Sinner is going for a first title away from the hard courts against Alcaraz, a two-time winner at the All England Club.
Djokovic had admitted previously that this tournament on his favourite surface offered probably his best chance of setting a standalone record of major singles title.
”These guys are fit, young, sharp. I feel like I’m going into the match with tank half empty. It’s just not possible to win a match like that,” Djokovic said.
”I don’t think it’s bad fortune. It’s just age, the wear and tear of the body.”
Having been largely outplayed for two sets, Djokovic threatened a comeback in the third but Sinner remarkably won five games in a row on his way to securing a fifth Grand Slam final.
Three-time major winner Sinner, 23, has now won the last six meetings against Djokovic but this was the first time on grass.
There were doubts around the fitness of both players before the match and, while Sinner did not seem hampered by his elbow injury, Djokovic did require a medical time out after the second set and admitted he had considered “withdrawing”.
Another final between Sinner and Alcaraz just five weeks after the last one at Roland Garros gives the Italian a chance for revenge against the Spaniard, who beat American fifth seed Taylor Fritz 6-4 5-7 6-3 7-6 (8-6) in Friday’s first semi-final on a sweltering hot day.
”It’s a huge honour for me to share the court again with Carlos,” Sinner said.
”Hopefully it will be a good match like the last one – I don’t know if it will be better because I don’t know if that’s possible but we will try – hopefully it will be an enjoyable match.”
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