Defending champion Jannik Sinner delivered a ruthless straight sets victory over Novak Djokovic on 10 July, winning 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 to reach the Wimbledon final and end the Serb’s latest attempt to claim a standalone record 25th Grand Slam title.
Cooler conditions greeted the second semi final of the day at the All England Club, but Sinner brought an intensity of his own, barely allowing Djokovic a foothold in the contest throughout. The world number one did not face a single break point until midway through the third set, and when the opportunity finally arrived, he dismissed it emphatically with an ace before serving out the match to love.
Sinner will now contest his second consecutive Wimbledon final, facing Germany’s Alexander Zverev, who earlier ended the remarkable run of British wildcard Arthur Fery in the day’s opening semi final. Victory on Sunday would make Sinner only the tenth man in the Open era to successfully defend the Wimbledon title.
For Djokovic, the defeat extends his wait to surpass Margaret Court and claim outright ownership of the record for most Grand Slam singles titles, while also denying him the chance to draw level with Roger Federer’s tally of eight Wimbledon men’s singles crowns. The 39 year old was warmly applauded by the Centre Court crowd as he departed, having given his all across a gruelling fortnight that included the longest match of the tournament, a five set marathon lasting more than five hours against Felix Auger Aliassime, completed just minutes before the Wednesday curfew. Those exertions appeared to catch up with him on Friday, with Djokovic having already spent over 16 hours on court across the tournament to reach his 15th Wimbledon semi final.
Sinner broke decisively in the ninth game of the opening set with a thunderous backhand winner down the line that left Djokovic rooted to the spot. He continued to press in the second set, eventually breaking again at 3-3 courtesy of an exquisite drop shot that caught his opponent flat footed. An early break in the third set effectively settled the outcome, with Djokovic fighting on gamely but appearing resigned as his hopes of an eighth Wimbledon title slipped away in the evening sunshine.
The Italian’s level continued to rise, adding a further 16 aces to his tally and finishing with 40 winners to just 15 unforced errors in a performance that represented his best of the fortnight. It marked his 99th career Grand Slam match win, achieved in exactly two hours and 20 minutes, only six minutes longer than his quickest victory of this year’s championships.
Sinner will head into Sunday’s final as firm favourite, having not dropped a set since his opening round match went the distance, and boasting a dominant head to head record over Zverev, having beaten the German in ten of their fourteen previous meetings. He will nonetheless be wary of a different proposition than in years past, with Zverev having ended his own long wait for a maiden Grand Slam title at the French Open earlier this year.
