Serbs face Kyrgios in the championship game. Top seed Novak Djokovic defeated Cameron Norrie of Great Britain 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday to go within one victory of winning his fourth Wimbledon title in a row and seventh overall.
The Serbian lifted his intensity throughout the match on the sun-baked Centre Court, breaking through Norrie’s defenses with his aggressive and accurate groundstrokes to reach his ninth Championships final in two hours and 34 minutes.
“My start wasn’t good. For the first set, he played better. Even though I have advanced to numerous Grand Slam semifinals, Djokovic admitted in an on-court interview that it is never simple to step onto the court. “Both yourself and other people have high expectations for you. Given that Cameron was competing in the tournament of his life, he didn’t have much to lose. Although it’s never simple to play at home, I wish him the best. He is a fantastic player, and I admire him greatly.
This week, World No. 3 is pursuing his 21st Grand Slam championship in an effort to catch 22-time major champion, Rafael Nadal. After Spaniard Rafael Nadal was forced to retire prior to his matchup with Nick Kyrgios in the semi-final due to an abdominal strain, the 35-year-old will take on the Australian in the championship match on Sunday. In their ATP Head2Head matchup, the Australian is ahead 2-0.
There will undoubtedly be much emotional pyrotechnics from both of us, according to Djokovic. His first Grand Slam final will take place in this one. He always plays with that level of excitement and without anything to lose. One of the biggest serves in the game, he is playing with such abandon. He simply had a big game overall, with powerful strokes. We have not recently played. I’ve never defeated him in a set. Hopefully, this time will be different.
It’s yet another final at Wimbledon, a competition I like. I’m hoping the experience will be advantageous for me.
With his victory over ninth seed Norrie at Wimbledon, Djokovic has now won 27 straight games. He will face Roger Federer in the 32nd Grand Slam final, giving him sole possession of the record for most major final appearances (31). The Serbian has an additional 85-10 record at The All England Lawn Tennis Club, surpassing Jimmy Connors’ 84-18 record and propelling him into second place all time.
Norrie showed no nervousness in a strong opening set as he soon established his range on Centre Court. The Briton broke three times in the first set to take the lead as he pounded his topspin forehand with precision and used his flat backhand to throw Djokovic off balance and into errors.
Djokovic, who is playing in his 11th semi-final at The Championships, is accustomed to huge moments. The World No. 3 turned the tables in the second set to even the match as he raised his effort, displayed excellent touch from all angles, and started to find his places on serve.
In the third set, Djokovic persisted in attacking, taking advantage of Norrie’s groundstrokes’ decreased depth and power to gain ground. In the set, the 35-year-old made just four unforced errors while launching nine winners. In the fourth set, the Serbian took an early lead with a crucial break before locking in to win.
“Today was quite hot. The Championships’ warmest day so far. At the beginning of the game, I wasn’t swinging through the ball as fluidly as I would have liked to, and Cameron was controlling the action, said Djokovic. “I believed that breaking his serve in the second set was luck on my side. He missed a few put-aways at 4-3 to give me the game, and I thought the momentum changed a little bit after that.
In their ATP Head2Head matchup, Djokovic is now 2-0 over Norrie, who was taking part in his first Grand Slam semifinal. The 26-year-old joined two-time champion Andy Murray, Tim Henman, and Roger Taylor as the fourth British male to reach the final four at SW19 in the Open Era. The Serbian has defeated James Ward, Kyle Edmund, Jack Draper, and Norrie in the previous six years. Former World No. 1 Murray is still the only British player to have defeated Djokovic at Wimbledon (2013 final).
Four-time tour-level titlist Norrie has never been beyond the third round at a Grand Slam before this fortnight. The ninth seed, though, outplayed Pablo Andujar, Jaume Munar, Steve Johnson, Tommy Paul, and Goffin on the London lawns thanks to a string of strong showings.
The Serbian defeated Jannik Sinner in the quarterfinals after defeating Tim van Rijthoven, Soonwoo Kwon, Thanasi Kokkinakis, and Miomir Kecmanovic in the opening four rounds. The Serbian came back from two sets to love down to defeat Sinner. The 38th ATP Masters 1000 championship, which extended his season record, was won by the Serbian, who is currently 22-5 overall.
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After Federer and Ken Rosewall, who both made it to two finals in London after turning 35, Djokovic, who is 35 years and 49 days old, is the third player in the Open Era to make it to the Wimbledon men’s singles final while being 35 or older.
