Defiant Djokovic storms back to beat Sinner and reach semi-finals

LONDON: Just when Novak Djokovic's troubling year looked like hitting another low he salvaged his bid for a fourth successive Wimbledon title by coming back from two sets down to beat Italian Jannik Sinner in the last eight on Tuesday (Jul 5).

The Serbian top seed had looked in all kinds of trouble against the inspired 20-year-old after being outplayed for two sets but stormed back to win 5-7 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-2 and set up a clash with Britain's surprise semi-finalist Cameron Norrie.

In the end there was an air of inevitability about the outcome as the battle-hardened 35-year-old seized control to reach his 43rd Grand Slam semi-final and 11th at Wimbledon.

He also extended an unbeaten run at Wimbledon that goes back to 2017 and now stands at 26 matches.

Djokovic has not added to his 20 major titles this year after being deported before the Australian Open following a COVID-19 standoff and then losing to old adversary Rafa Nadal in the quarter-finals of the French Open.

He might even be barred from the US Open over his decision to shun a COVID-19 vaccine but kept alive the prospect of facing Spaniard Nadal in Sunday's Wimbledon final with a seventh career comeback from two sets down.

After taking the acclaim of the crowd on Centre Court, Djokovic explained how he had turned it around.

"The first two sets compared to the last three was like two different matches," Djokovic, who is now joint second all-time with Jimmy Connors on 83 Wimbledon match wins, said.

"He (Sinner) was the better player for two sets, then I went out and had a toilet break and had a little pep talk with myself in the mirror, it's actually true.

"I broke early in the third set and that gave me a confidence boost and I saw a little doubt in him."

Sinner, the 10th