TamilDjokovic tops Berrettini to close in on true Slam
10 September 2021, 12:02 pm
Novak Djokovic, of Serbia, motions and looks up after defeating Matteo Berrettini, of Italy, during the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open tennis tournament early Thursday, Sept. 9, 2021, in New York. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)
Djokovic ceded the opening set for the third consecutive match at Flushing Meadows and ninth time at a major in 2021 but again it didn’t matter. The Serb quickly corrected his strokes and beat No.6 seed Matteo Berrettini of Italy 5-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 in a quarter-final.
After 17 unforced errors in the first set, Djokovic made a total of 11 the rest of the way. Djokovic has earned five victories on the US Open’s hard courts and will face 2020 runner-up Alexander Zverev in Friday’s semi-finals. If Djokovic can win that match and Sunday’s final, he will join Don Budge (1938) and Rod Laver (1962 and 1969) as the only men to clinch all four major singles trophies in one season.
Zverev goes into the semi-finals on a 16-match winning streak, including a 1-6, 6-3, 6-1 triumph against Djokovic en route to the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics. The No.4-seeded Zverev, a 24-year-old German, advanced to the semi-finals in New York on Wednesday afternoon by beating Lloyd Harris of South Africa 7-6(6), 6-3, 6-4.
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