Tennis

Novak Djokovic sets up Wimbledon final rematch with Carlos Alcaraz

Djokovic sees off Lorenzo Musetti in straight sets after Alcaraz came from a set down against Daniil Medvedev

Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates winning match point with a violin gesture after his win over Lorenzo Musetti of Italy in the men's semi-final at Wimbledon. Photograph: Julian Finney/Getty Images
Fri Jul 12 2024 - 20:20

Novak Djokovic set up a blockbuster repeat of last year’s Wimbledon final against Carlos Alcaraz after swatting aside Lorenzo Musetti.

The seven-time champion let his tennis do the talking with a comprehensive 6-4 7-6 (2) 6-4 semi-final win in two hours and 48 minutes.

At one stage a Centre Court joker yelled out “gooood night”, mocking Djokovic’s post-match swipe at the crowd for their perceived booing following his fourth-round win over Holger Rune.

But the 37-year-old did not give any rowdy spectators the chance to get under his skin this time as he booked a revenge mission against the young Spaniard who captured his title 12 months ago.

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“During the match it’s business time, trying to outplay your opponent,” he said.

“I’m very happy to be in another final but I don’t want to stop here. Hopefully I’ll get my hands on that trophy.”

That final defeat last year was Djokovic’s only loss in his last 50 matches on Centre Court, while Musetti, by contrast, was making his first appearance on Wimbledon’s biggest stage.

Djokovic, who played in his first Wimbledon semi-final in 2007 when Musetti was just five, had the luxury of three days off to rest the knee he had surgery on last month, after quarter-final opponent Alex De Minaur pulled out injured.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion clinched the first break of the match for 4-2 and turned to wave his arms at the crowd, asking for more noise.

They duly obliged, but the din was nothing compared to the roar which met 22-year-old Musetti breaking back as Djokovic served for the opening set.

The underdog is an undoubtedly watchable player; inventive, crafty and with a one-handed backhand which is very easy on the eye.

However, when he tried one drop-shot too many and watched it land apologetically into the net, Djokovic eased a set in front.

Musetti hit back immediately, though, after a Djokovic double fault afforded him two break points, the second of which he converted with a swish of that backhand.

But Djokovic hauled himself back on serve to love, wriggled out of a spot of bother at 5-5, 15-30 with three aces and whizzed through the tie-break – only briefly pausing to applaud a stunning round-the-net Musetti winner – for a two-set lead.

A break at the start of the third, sealed with a backhand cross-court winner, extinguished any fire Musetti had left in him as Djokovic eased serenely into his 10th Wimbledon final.

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates winning his Wimbledon semi-final against Russia's Daniil Medvedev. Photograph: Andrej Isakovic/AFP via Getty Images

Alcaraz moved to within one win of a second successive Wimbledon title after fighting from a set down to defeat Daniil Medvedev.

It was a repeat of last year’s semi-final, which the Spaniard had won easily, but this time Medvedev proved more of an obstacle before Alcaraz clinched a 6-7 (1) 6-3 6-4 6-4 victory.

The 21-year-old will contest a fourth major final and a second in a row after his first title at the French Open last month, and he now looks to repeat last year’s spectacular win over Djokovic in five sets.

Medvedev can be proud of his efforts, which included a quarter-final victory over an admittedly ailing Jannik Sinner, but the Russian seemed fortunate not to be defaulted during the opening set.

After umpire Eva Asderaki decided Medvedev had not got to an Alcaraz drop shot before it bounced twice, resulting in a break of serve to the Spaniard, Medvedev reacted with what appeared to be a foul-mouthed rant at the official.

Asderaki climbed down from her chair and talked to the referee and supervisor – an unusual occurrence – before eventually giving Medvedev just a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Asked on Tuesday what made Alcaraz such a difficult opponent, Medvedev, who did manage to beat the Spaniard at the same stage of the US Open last summer, cited his ability to strike winners from any part of the court.

There were several examples of that in the first game, with Medvedev only just holding on to his serve, but Alcaraz has had dips along with the peaks this Wimbledon, and that was how the opening set played out.

Medvedev, known for hanging around among the line judges, had changed his tactics, not only trying to keep a more aggressive position but coming to the net with surprising regularity.

While his forays were not always successful, they put question marks in the mind of Alcaraz, who lacked discipline on his groundstrokes, too often making errors on regulation shots.

A slew of them presented Medvedev with a break in the fourth game. Alcaraz immediately hit back only to drop serve again, this time his favoured drop shot letting him down.

It did the business with Medvedev serving for the set at 5-3, leading to the Russian’s indiscretion, for which he could be heavily fined.

But it was the Russian who dominated the tie-break, winning the opening five points and finishing it off with a 121 miles per hour second serve.

The spark for Alcaraz came in the third game of the second set, when he won a terrific all-court rally to hold serve, putting his finger to his ear to encourage the crowd to cheer louder.

And it was the third seed roaring towards his box, which included Real Madrid star Luka Modric, moments later when a forehand pass whipped cross-court gave him the break for 3-1.

Medvedev’s net adventures were now veering towards reckless and they became less frequent, the Russian concentrating on trying to resist the barrage of pressure coming from the other end.

Alcaraz had found his magician mode, drawing gasps from the crowd one moment with the power of his groundstrokes before feathering drop shots to leave Medvedev scrambling.

He forged ahead early in the third set and, when he disagreed with Asderaki’s call of ‘not up’, he merely wagged his finger in her direction.

There were still bizarrely lackadaisical moments from Alcaraz, like the overhead miss late in the set that left him comically holding his head in his hands, or the careless game he played to allow Medvedev to break back at the beginning of the fourth set.

But those were far outnumbered by the sublime, and he wrapped up victory after two hours and 55 minutes when a final Medvedev forehand flew wide.