Novak Djokovic continued his stellar streak at the Australian Open 2023, beating Andrei Rublev to advance to the semi-finals on Wednesday 25 January. She lost just three games in the first two sets and ruthlessly dominated the flow of the game. When the two first met at a Grand Slam, Djokovic never let Rublev into the competition. The world No. 5 responded to Rublev’s raw power with his robust defense and his punches to the ground as the Russian went unanswered.
Despite the unpredictable nature of the fight, especially in the opening two sets, Djokovic felt the match wasn’t going to be easy. During his on-pitch interview, he said: “I don’t think the result of the first two sets reflects the truth or the reality of the game. It was two even games. Andrey is a great opponent. A great player, and I have a lot of respect for him, one of the greatest forehands, and one of the fastest players on Tour. “However, the Serb said with a satisfied expression on yesterday’s game in Rod Laver Arena: “If I have to summarize, all the important shots, the important moments where I found my best tennis player. That makes me the happiest tonight.
#1 Novak Djokovic advances to his 44th Grand Slam semi-final
Defeating Rublev, Novak Djokovic secured his spot in his 44th Grand Slam semi-final (178 semi-finals on the ATP Tour – 4th largest in the Open Era) and 10th at Melbourne Park. Interestingly, he has finished perfectly in the last four competitions at Melbourne Park 9-0. The Serb reached 11 semi-finals at Roland Garros (6-5) and Wimbledon (8-3) and
#2 7th male player to reach SF Australian Open after 35th of age
Novak Djokovic has an impressive record at the Australian Open. After beating Rublev on Wednesday, the 35-year-old improved his tournament score to 87-8. Meanwhile, he joined an exclusive club of just seven players, all aged 35, to take on the last to reach four in Melbourne Park.
The other members of the group are Ken Rosewall, Roger Federer, Mal Anderson, Rafael Nadal, Arthur Ashe, and Colin Dibley. Of these, only Nadal is still active and Federer retired last year. Nadal entered the current edition as the defending champion but was eliminated in the second round by Mackenzie McDonald. This paved the way for Djokovic to win with him the grandest Slam titles in men’s singles (22) to reach, it’s time to open up and return to No. 1 in the world rankings.
#3 is the longest winning streak by a man at the Australian Open.
Novak Djokovic is the most successful player at the Australian Open with a record nine singles titles.
The Serbian player has won the title in his last 3 visits to Melbourne Park. He missed last year’s edition after being expelled from the country due to the COVID-19 sick leave controversy. One year later, however, Djokovic set another record on his 18th visit to the Happy Slam. Djokovic is picking up where he left off in 2021 – winning his ninth title – and is now 5-0 in the tournament this year and has won his last 26 games since losing to Hyeon Chung in the 2018 quarterfinals. This is Melbourne Park’s longest winning streak in an era opened by a man.
Andre Agassi also had a 26-game winning streak between 2000 and 2004. Djokovic beat his eternal rival Rafael Nadal in the 2019 final to become the first man to win seven Australian Open titles.
A year later, he successfully defended his title at Melbourne Park, defeating Dominic Thiem in the title match. his second treble in the tournament, like 2011-2013. Note that no other Open Era man has hit a three-pointer in the first Grand Slam of the year.
__________________________________________________________________________________
