LAST UPDATE | 23 Jan
NOVAK DJOKOVIC FENDED off a strong challenge from Taylor Fritz to reach the Australian Open semi-finals for the 11th time.
The world number one has never lost in Melbourne once he has made it beyond the last eight, and there is no doubt how much he wants a 25th Grand Slam title.
Djokovic had beaten American Fritz in all eight of their previous meetings but this was certainly not straightforward, with the top seed finally securing a 7-6 (3) 4-6 6-2 6-3 victory after three hours and 45 minutes.
The first game alone lasted 16 minutes and the first set 84 minutes as they toiled in the heat on Rod Laver Arena.
Fritz, looking to reach a slam semi-final for the first time at the third attempt, remarkably saved all 15 break points he faced in the opening two sets, and he impressively levelled the contest.
It was just the third set he had won against the Serbian, with the other two both coming in a third-round clash here in 2021, when Djokovic suffered an abdominal injury but still managed to win in five.
But Djokovic began to turn the screw in the third set as Fritz started to feel his left foot, and successive breaks in the fourth set him on the way to a record-extending 48th slam semi-final.
Speaking to Nick Kyrgios on court, Djokovic said: “I suffered a lot in the first couple of sets. Also due to his high-quality tennis. He was really kind of suffocating me from the back of the court.
“It was really difficult to find the right timing, it was really hot while the sun was still out. We all know Taylor has got one of the best serves in the world. I know the kind of a threat he poses when he serves on such a high quality.
“Conversion of the break points was really poor but I managed to break him when it mattered. I think I upped my game midway through the third set all the way through to the end.”
Earlier, US Open champion Coco Gauff overcame huge resistance from the unseeded Marta Kostyuk Tuesday to move into her first Australian Open semi-final.
The American fourth seed wore down the Ukrainian to clinch a scrappy encounter 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (3/7), 6-2 in three hours and eight minutes.
After showing ominous form to race into the last eight, it was a far from convincing display by the 19-year-old, who struggled on serve and fluffed countless opportunities.
“Happy, really proud of the fight I showed today,” said Gauff, who had never progressed beyond the fourth round at Melbourne Park in four previous attempts.
“Marta is a tough opponent… I really fought and left it all on the court today.”
The low standard came from both players, with an incredible 16 service breaks throughout the match and the pair racking up 107 unforced errors between them.
Kostyuk will rue missing her chances, letting slip a 5-1 lead and squandering set points in the first set.
The American also faltered at crunch moments, broken when serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set before keeping her cool as Kostyuk became more agitated in the deciding set.
“I was just trying to get one more game in the first set and at least make it competitive and then one game turned to another and I was able to win that set,” she said.
“In the second, I gave myself opportunities but became a little bit passive and when I came out in the third I was just trying to play aggressively and hit through the court.”
The win extended Gauff’s unbeaten streak this year to 10 matches after she won at Auckland in the lead-up.
She is into the semi-finals without facing a seed after a string of top names crashed out of the tournament early.
Meanwhile, dominant defending champion Aryna Sabalenka stormed past ninth seed Barbora Krejcikova, into an Australian Open semi-final with Gauff.
The world number two was untouchable in a commanding 6-2, 6-3 victory on Rod Laver Arena to reach the last four at a Grand Slam for the sixth consecutive time.
She will meet Gauff next in a replay of last year’s US Open final, which the American teenager won in three sets.
After that defeat when favourite at Flushing Meadows, Sabalenka made clear she wants to ensure she is not a one-hit-wonder.
And on current form, dropping just 16 games so far at Melbourne Park, Gauff will be the underdog again.
“I played really great tennis, I just hope I can keep playing this way,” said the 25-year-old Sabalenka.
“I mean, it’s all because of the atmosphere. I have the best support here.”
The Belarusian had won all seven of her previous Grand Slam quarter-finals and attributed her consistency to hard work.
“A lot of hard work. I have been working so hard this last year and in pre-season. It’s all about hard work, give it all in the practice court so you are ready for the match,” she said.
She wasted little time laying down the law against Krejcikova, the 2021 French Open champion, working two break points off the Czech’s serve in game three and making no mistake.
Further breaks came in game five and seven, with Sabalenka in full control, serving to love for the set in just 33 minutes.
Krejcikova had reached the last eight after an arduous journey, losing the first set in three of her first four matches, before bouncing back.
But there was no repeat against a player in peak form and whose booming groundstrokes were unstoppable.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with Sabalenka breaking in game three and five.
The Czech player, who has never gone past the last eight in Melbourne staged a mini-recovery but it was too little too late as the second seed galloped home.
- With reporting from AFP
