Novak Djokovic beats Sebastian Korda, advances to semifinals in push for 7th Miami Open title

MIAMI GARDENS, Florida: Novak Djokovic is finding a higher gear in South Florida after a sluggish start to 2025.

Djokovic, gunning for his seventh Miami Open title, dispatched American Sebastian Korda 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) Thursday in one hour, 24 minutes in a quarterfinal match that was postponed from Wednesday night because the women’s quarterfinal between Jessica Pegula and Emma Raducanu ran past 11 p.m. and would have begun at about midnight — against new ATP rules.

Djokovic advanced to Friday’s semifinals and will face Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. Djokovic is 12-1 against the 33-year-old Dimitrov, who reached the tournament finals in 2024.

Djokovic, who won all six of his titles at the tournament’s previous venue at Key Biscayne, is going for his 100th professional title.

“I’m getting great support,” Djokovic said. “I feel I have a really good chance to go all the way here. ...I’m playing the best I have in some time.”

With the Hard Rock Stadium fans cheering the 37-year-old and chanting his name despite him facing an American opponent, Djokovic rallied in the second set from 4-1 and 5-2 down to win in a tiebreaker.

He served an ace on match point and finished with an 83 first-service percentage against the 24th-seeded Korda. The 37-year-old Serbian let out a yell after the victory and strummed his racket like a violin.

“One word — serve,″ Djokovic said when asked the key to his second-set surge. “I was serving very well — best serving performance in a long time.”

The men’s leader in Grand Slam titles at 24 has been out of form this year, starting with an injury retirement at the Australian Open in January. Earlier this month, Djokovic lost his first match at Indian Wells to Botic van de Zandschulp.

Korda, son of