PrashantNews
Top seed and defending champion Jannik Sinner on Friday overcame the challenge of Ben Shelton to enter the Australian Open final where he would meet no 2 Alexander Zverev in Sunday’s clash.
Earlier, tennis great Novak Djokovic’s dream of winning his 25th Grand Slam title hit a roadblock after he retired with a muscle tear in a semi-final match against Zverev at Melbourne Park.
Zverev reached his first Australian final after Djokovic quit the match losing first set 7-6. Djokovic left the match to a mixture of boos and applause. Zverev, who also noted Djokovic’s slight limping movement, was highly critical of the crowd for jeering Djokovic.
Djokovic (37) needs one more Grand Slam title which would see him break his current tie on 24 with Margaret Court.
In the second semi-final, Sinner defeated 21st ranked player Shelton of US 7-6, 6-2, 6-2. He would now meet Zverev in the final. After giving tough fight in the first set, Shelton could not keep the pace with Sinner in the next two sets despite displaying some excellent shots.
“I am very happy that I handled the situation (match against Shelton) very well and happy to be back in the final. Let’s see what happens on Sunday,” Sinner said after the match. Sinner served eight aces against Shelton’s seven. Sinner also thanked his coach Darren Cahill.
Sinner said there will be no favourites when he plays Zverev on Sunday.