Novak Djokovic engaged in some back-and-forth with those in the crowd pulling for the last American man in the field as he advanced to a record-extending 53rd Grand Slam semifinal.
Novak Djokovic took a two-set lead against Taylor Fritz, an opponent he always beats, to close in on the semifinals, a round he often reaches at the US Open, and marked the occasion by blowing kisses to those in Tuesday night’s crowd pulling for the last American man in the field.
That was just a taste of the back-and-forth between Djokovic and some of the folks in the Arthur Ashe Stadium seats, and there was still work that remained, but he would finish off a 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 victory. Djokovic improved to 11-0 against 2024 runner-up Fritz and reached a record-extending 53rd Grand Slam semifinal, a total that includes a record-tying 14 at Flushing Meadows.
“In the end of the day, a win matters. I’m really proud of the fight that I put in. I wear my heart on my sleeve, always, for this sport. So I’m still enjoying it”, Djokovic said. “It was really anybody’s match. . For most of the second and third sets, he was the better player. That last game was nerve-wracking.”
He needed three match points to end it, and was leaning over, hands on knees, after the first two resulted in long rallies that went Fritz’s way. But on the last, the contest ended anticlimactically with a double-fault by No. 4-seeded Fritz, whose exit means the U.S. drought will continue without a male singles champion at any major since 2003, when Andy Roddick won in New York.
