Novak Djokovic has upset World No.3 Carlos Alcaraz to advance to the semi-finals of the Australian Open.
The Serb, 37, overcame Alcaraz in a titanic tussle at the Rod Laver Arena, coming from a set down to win 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-4.
Djokovic will now face No.2 seed Alexander Zverev for a place in this weekend’s showpiece final and the chance to create more history.
Djokovic was seeded No.7 for this month’s tournament in Melbourne, with Alcaraz the No.3 seed. And he will now go on in search of a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title.
He had to overcome adversity to do so, though. It seemed as though this eagerly anticipated quarter-final would be coming to a premature end after Djokovic suffered a groin injury in the ninth game of the first set.
But Djokovic, who was cheered on by his new coach, Andy Murray, rallied and showed the heart of a champion to give himself a chance of winning an 11th Australian Open title.
When he was asked about the injury post-match, he said on court: “Since I’m still in the tournament, I obviously don’t want to reveal too much. The medication started to kick in and it helped, no doubt about it. I had to take another dose – I mean this sounds awful that I had to take another one – but I had to.
“If I had lost that second set, I don’t know if I would have continued playing but I felt better and better. I managed to play a great couple of games to close out the second set and then I saw Carlos was hesitant from the back of the court and I took my chances. Then I started to feel better, started to move better and it didn’t bother me or create any hinderance at the end of the match.
“When the medication starts to wear off, I will see what the reality is tomorrow morning. Right now, I will just try to be in the moment and enjoy this victory.”
Zverev booked his place in the tournament’s semi-finals with a win over America’s Tommy Paul, but his victory was marred by a furious outburst after play was halted due to A FEATHER.
The umpire judged that a backhand shot from Zverev flew too close to said feather during a point in the second set. The point was ordered to be replayed, much to the displeasure of both Zverev and the crowd, who booed.
The German was heard raging: “This is unbelievable. It’s a feather, there’s millions of them on the court!”
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