Novak Djokovic of Serbia hits a return during the men's singles semifinal match between Novak Djokovic of Serbia and Denis Shapovalov of Canada at Wimbledon tennis Championship in London, Britain, on July 9, 2021. (Xinhua/Han Yan)
LONDON, July 9 (Xinhua) -- World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is one victory away from his 20th Grand Slam title as the Serbian beat Canadian Denis Shapovalov 7-6(3), 7-5, 7-5 in the men's singles semifinals at the Wimbledon Championships on Friday.
Djokovic, 34, had a game broken first in the opening set but was resilient enough to revenge the dropped points.
Shapovalov, 22, kept playing aggressively in the second set but was upset by the seasoned defending champion with a break in the 11th game.
"He was better for most of the second set, had a lot of opportunities and just didn't manage to close it out when he needed to," said Djokovic. "In important moments I think I probably held my nerves better than he did and just make him play an extra shot, make him do an unforced error, which was the case."
If Djokovic wins the final on Sunday, he will be not only a six-time Wimbledon champion but also a 20-time Grand Slam winner just as Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal.
"It would mean everything. That's why I'm here. That's why I'm playing. I imagined myself being in a position to fight for another Grand Slam trophy prior to coming to London. I put myself in a very good position," said Djokovic.
Djokovic's last opponent here is Matteo Berrettini as the Italian seventh seed outplayed Hubert Hurkacz of Poland 6-3, 6-0, 6-7(3), 6-4.
Berrettini, reaching a Grand Slam final for the first time, said he was quite confident ahead of the semifinals. "I knew that I could win the match. I think I played my best so far. So I'm really happy for my performance." Enditem
