Field Level Media
14 May 2022, 04:49 GMT+10
Top-seeded Novak Djokovic is on the doorstep of his 1,000th career ATP victory after ousting Felix Auger-Aliassime 7-5, 7-6 (1) in Friday's quarterfinals of the Internazionali BNL d'Italia in Rome.
Djokovic also moved into the No. 1 spot in the world rankings with the victory, supplanting Russia's Daniil Medvedev.
Djokovic converted 73.7 percent of his first-serve points while sliding past Auger-Aliassime, the eighth-seeded Canadian who recorded 11 aces.
The Serbian was one game away from closing out the match before Auger-Aliassime won four of the next five games to force a tiebreak. Djokovic dominated the tiebreak for win No. 999 of his career.
"I thought it was high-level tennis," Djokovic said afterward. "He did ask me to raise the level and I had to play consistently well. I thought I could have finished the job earlier ... but credit to him for fighting back. Amazing atmosphere as well tonight."
Only four men's players have reached 1,000 wins: Jimmy Connors (1,274), Roger Federer (1,251), Ivan Lendl (1,068) and Rafael Nadal (1,051).
Djokovic will attempt to join the club in the semifinals against fifth-seeded Norwegian Casper Ruud, who posted a 7-6 (7), 7-5 win over Canadian 13th seed Denis Shapovalov.
"Great quality opponent again," Djokovic said of Ruud. "Clay-court specialist, but he has improved a lot in other surfaces, played the final of Miami this year. Just a very hard worker, nice guy.
"We practice a lot and get along well off the court. Tomorrow, obviously on the court we want to win against each other, no doubt. ... Hopefully I can play as well as I did tonight."
Second-seeded Alexander Zverev of Germany and fourth-seeded Stefanos Tsitsipas of Greece will meet in the other semifinal.
Zverev dispatched Chile's Cristian Garin 7-5, 6-2, while Tsitsipas eliminated 10th-seeded Italian Jannik Sinner 7-6 (5), 6-2.
Zverev had four aces among 24 winners in his win over Garin.
"It was a high-level match. At times it wasn't pretty tennis, but I got the job done and that is the most important thing," Zverev said afterward. "I am through to the semifinals and I am happy about that."
Tsitsipas racked up 10 aces while controlling his match and disappointing the Sinner-rooting fans in Rome.
"I am happy things turned out well. It was a great day at the office," Tsitsipas said in his on-court interview. "I was able to really step it up in the second set and I think the most important part was that first set tie-break. I really went for it when I had to. I didn't overthink or hesitate and that paid off in the end."
Ruud seized control of his match with Shapovalov by converting 77.6 percent of his first-serve points.
"I think one of the most important things on clay is to put a lot of first serves in. Today was working well," Ruud said afterward. "I was serving well all match. At the beginning you are sometimes a bit nervous and excited to start, but after that I was able to calm down and find my tempo."
--Field Level MediaGet a daily dose of Irish Sun news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Irish Sun.
More InformationSYDNEY, NSW, Australia - The Australian Labor Party has been swept to victory for a second term after defeating the Coalition in an...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: The U.S. State Department has started a second round of its deferred resignation program, according to an internal...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: U.S. President Donald Trump said this week that some fraud cases had been reported to the Justice Department based...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: This week, the Trump administration has approved an emergency rule that allows gas stations across the U.S....
WASHINGTON, D.C.: Major automobile companies want Congress to stop California's plan to ban the sale of gas-only cars by 2035—a rule...
Drones have struck a ship on a mission to highlight the halting of humanitarian aid to the blockaded Gaza Strip, triggering a fire....
ATLANTA, Georgia: United Parcel Service is cutting 20,000 jobs and closing dozens of facilities, marking one of its biggest shakeups...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland is preparing to activate its first-ever military radar system, with phased implementation set to begin early...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland has moved a step closer to strengthening its peacekeeping capabilities after the U.S. State Department approved...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland could soon have its first dedicated winter sports and entertainment arena, with plans for a 5,000-seater venue...
FRANKFURT, Germany: German energy giant RWE has paused its offshore wind operations in the United States, citing ongoing regulatory...
DUBLIN, Ireland: Ireland's homelessness crisis has hit a devastating new record, with 15,418 people living in emergency accommodation...