Novak Djokovic returns to the semifinals at the Australian Open again, defeating Taylor Fritz with a score of 7-6(3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. An incredibly balanced match for the first two sets, with Djokovic’s performance improving on serve throughout the match and the American not being able to maintain the pace shown at the start for the entire duration of the match. For the number one in the world it is the Slam semifinal number 48, the eleventh in Australia which leads him to become the second player to have reached this milestone like Jack Crawford and behind only Federer (15). Some regrets instead for Fritz who, after playing the first two sets at a very high level, did not hold up physically, even before mentally.
Ready to go and the opening game of the match is resolved only afterwards 24 points, three break points in favor of Djokovic and the physical fitness of the two players was immediately put to the test. On the hottest day since the start of the tournament, with almost thirty degrees, energy management becomes of fundamental importance. In Fritz’s next innings they are there three more break possibilities for the Serbian – consecutive from 0-40 – without however managing to convert any of these. It should be noted that despite Djokovic’s first serve coming in just 40% of the time, the only one to concede break points was the American tennis player, who was in difficulty when the exchange was prolonged and he didn’t get the point with the serve. The first opportunities for Fritz they arrive in the most important moment of the set, on a score of 6-5 15-40 and they are two set points, canceled out by the Serbian with a backhand winner and a first serve smoothed by the American. The tie-break begins with a smash to the net by Fritz that ends well beyond the baseline and mini-break at the start for Djokovic, who raises the level of play and closes seven points to three after 84 minutes of play.
The beginning of the second set opens against the trend of the previous one and the break immediately arrives in favor of Fritz, with the Serbian committing two consecutive double faults. The advantage gained by the American was consolidated in the following innings, which saves a total of seven break points in the next four tours of duty. If there was no game in the first set when the rally began, now it’s Fritz who wins many more points at the end of hard-fought points, playing to the limit and often finding the line. Went to serve at 5-4 to close the set, the number 12 seed even ended the game at zero and took a set equal after two and a half hours of play.
The third set begins with merciless statistics for Djokovic 0/15 on break points during the first two sets, never this bad in his entire career (the previous record was 0/12 against Federer in 2018). The response of the number in the world to this data? Two breaks in favor at the beginning and end of the match in the only two break points conceded by Fritz. The American’s service performance clearly worsened, with zero aces compared to nine in the previous set, which compromised the set which was won by “Nole” in just forty minutes of play. Fritz’s decline in performance is also confirmed at the start of the fourth set, he finds it more difficult to move and is no longer able to respond to the Serbian with continuity. The match is decided between the sixth and eighth game with a series of breaks and counter breaks that lead Djokovic to serve out the match, he closes on the first useful match point with a forehand winner coming out.