MELBOURNE: On Tuesday, Novak Djokovic defeated Taylor Fritz to go to his 11th Australian Open semi-final and 48th Grand Slam, while Coco Gauff had to dig deep in the scorching heat.
The Serbian great defeated the 12th seeded American 7-6 (7/3), 4-6, 6-2, 6-3 at Rod Laver Arena to keep his pursuit for a 25th major title on track.
Djokovic normally always gets the evening slot on centre court, but he was moved to the afternoon on a day when temperatures rose to 32 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit), and the world number one said it was tough going.
“Physically and emotionally very draining,” he stated after the three hours and 45 minutes of slog, adding that he “suffered a lot”.
“He was serving well, staying close to the line and kind of suffocating me from the back of the court,” he told me.
“I think I upped my game probably midway through the third set all the way to the end.”
The 36-year-old will face either Italian fourth seed Jannik Sinner or Russian fifth seed Andrey Rublev next, with bad omens for both men.
Djokovic has won all 10 previous semi-finals at Melbourne Park, dating back to his first victory in 2008.
Gauff, the US Open champion with the most errors, was likewise put through her paces before defeating unseeded Ukrainian Marta Kostyuk 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (3/7), 6-2 after more than three hours.
She will face either powerful reigning champion Aryna Sabalenka or ninth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova in the final.
However, her performance will not instill dread in whoever she faces next, as the 19-year-old struggles with serve and wastes numerous opportunities.
She agreed it was below par, earning herself a ‘C’.
“Hopefully got the bad match out of the way and I can play even better,” she was quoted as saying.
The low level was not limited to Gauff; the pair combined for 107 unforced errors, including 16 service breaks.
