Djokovic and Paul, how was the semifinal of the Australian Open – Corriere.it

Novak Djokovic for the tenth, Stefanos Tsitsipas for the first ever in a Grand Slam. In an Australian Open that saw seeded players fall from the first rounds, two big names went to the final, who Sunday morning not only the title will be played in Melbourne, but also the top of the world ranking. That for Djokovic – who also has to manage the controversy over the photos of the father with Putin’s supporters – would not be new (he would find her after almost eight months), but for Tsitsipas s.

Of the two, the Greek struggled more, who needed four sets to get the better of the Russian Karen Khachanov (7-6 6-4 6-7 6-3): a week after the success in five sets against Jannik Sinner, therefore, for Tsitsipas there is the double opportunity awaited for a lifetime. First Slam and first place in the standings. Nole, on the other hand, a year after his expulsion from Australia, pursues his tenth success in Melbourne, with the hope of becoming the second tennis player in history to reach double figures in the number of victories in a single Slam (the only one, at least until Sunday, Nadal at Roland Garros with 14) and to join Rafa himself with 22 Grand Slams won.

As expected, the thrilling adventure of the American Tommy Paul stopped in the semifinals. There was only a match in the first set, closed 7-5 after the Serbian ahead 5-1 had made up his mind until 5-5. In the other two sets, Djokovic has only three games left (6-1 6-2) to his opponent. In 2021, Tsitsipas reached the final of a Grand Slam for the first time, in Paris: Won the first two sets, then lost the next three. Novak Djokovic was on the other side of the net.