Reigning champion Jannik Sinner reached the Australian Open final on Friday, where he will face Alexander Zverev after Novak Djokovic retired injured during his semi-final clash with the German.
Former world No 1 and 10-time champion in Melbourne Djokovic went down 7-6 in the first, after he was beaten 7-5 in the tiebreak before immediately signalling he could not continue. It was a tight semi-final, with no breaks of serve and Zverev clinched the set after Djokovic hit a slam into the net.
The 37-year-old, who was bidding to become the first male or female player to win 25 grand slam titles, picked up an injury during his stunning victory over world No 3 Carlos Alcaraz in the last eight, and appeared to show discomfort during his match with Zverev but was jeered by some inside the Rod Laver Arena after leaving prematurely.
“I know that everybody paid for tickets and everybody wants to see a great five-set match,” Zverev said. “But you have to understand for the past 20 years Novak Djokovic has given tennis absolutely everything.
“He has won this tournament with an abdominal tear, a hamstring tear. If he cannot continue with this match, it means he really can’t continue.”
Djokovic remains tied with Margaret Court on 24 titles and his last grand slam victory was the 2023 US Open, though he did win a gold medal at last year’s Paris Olympics.
“It was getting worse and worse,” Djokovic said at his post-match press conference. “I knew, even if I won the first set, it was going to be a huge uphill battle for me.”
His last victory in Melbourne came in 2023, 15 years after his first, and suggested he may not return next year.
“There is a chance,” Djokovic replied when asked if this was his final Australian Open. “Who knows?
“I’ll just have to see how the season goes. I want to keep going. But whether I’m going to have a revised schedule or not for next year, I’m not sure.”
Djokovic also refused to confirm whether Andy Murray would continue as his coach.
“You know, we both were disappointed with what just happened, so we didn’t talk about the future steps,” Djokovic said. “We are so fresh off the court.
“I’ll definitely have a chat with Andy and thank him for being here with me. You know, give him my feedback, which is, of course, positive, and see how he feels.”
For World No 2 Zverev, this will be his third grand slam final after losing at the US Open to Dominic Thiem in 2020 after leading two sets to love and then to Carlos Alcaraz in five sets at the French Open last year.
But to claim a maiden grand slam title, he will need to overcome world No 1 and Sinner.
The Italian beat Ben Shelton 7-6, 6-2, 6-2. After a close first set, the two-time grand slam winner upped his level as his American opponent conceded his final two service games with a pair of double faults.
“It was a very tough first set but a very crucial one,” Sinner said afterwards. “I felt like he wasn’t serving at his best today, the percentage wasn’t where he wanted it to be.
“I think we both actually returned better than we served. The first set is always very important, it gives you a lot of confidence and there was a lot of tension for both of us. I’m very happy with the way I handled the situation today.
“Obviously the support has been amazing, so thank you so much as always for coming. I’m happy to be back in the final here.”
