Novak Djokovic says that despite being a 36-year-old father the “fire is still burning” as he looks to clench an 11th Australian Open title.
The Serb champion faces American world No. 5 Taylor Fritz on Tuesday for a spot in the tournament’s semi-final against either Jannik Sinner or Andrey Rublev, who ended the run of the Australian golden boy Alex de Minaur.
Novak Djokovic after beating Adrian Mannarino. AP
Fritz posted an impressive win against Greek star Stefanos Tsitsipas in the fourth round, but Djokovic holds an 8-0 record over him.
“He hasn’t really hasn’t ever had a reason to change up what he’s doing or change strategy because it’s always gone his way,” Fritz said before the match.
“If I beat someone eight times in a row, I’d be pretty confident playing them, too, I’d have to say. I can’t really fault him for that.”
Earlier this week Djokovic said while the pain of being away from his wife and two children grew stronger, he was determined to keep playing tennis as long as he was on top of the sporting mountain.
“The fire is still burning. I’m not playing because I need more money or more points. I just want to play. I really enjoy the competition,” Djokovic said after wiping out Frenchman Adrian Mannarino in straight sets on Sunday.
“When I feel that I am not able to compete at the highest level with the guys and be a contender for a grand slam title, then I’ll probably consider going into retirement.
“But that can change, obviously. I’m not a teenager anymore. I’m a father and a husband. (There) a lot of things happening in the private life off court that I enjoy, that require my attention, my presence, my energy.”
Swedish legend Thomas Johansson, who won the Australian Open in 2002, said while Sinner and Spanish world No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz loomed as the biggest threats to Djokovic, he believed the Serbian 10-time champion would add an 11th trophy to his cabinet.
“Novak is the guy to beat,” Johansson said on Monday. “Even if he’s not playing well, he’s winning matches. This is his biggest strength for me. I would be surprised if Novak would not win another time here.”
Czech former world No. 8 Radek Stepanek, who lost to Djokovic 13 times, including in the Australian Open in 2013, said Melbourne Park was his “living room”.
“This is Novak’s living room. This is his home. I know from my experience that he would like to keep that as his home,” Stepanek said.
On other side of the men’s draw, Polish world No. 9 Hubert Hurkacz takes on Russia’s Daniil Medvedev, who won the US Open in 2021, with the winner to face either Alcaraz or Alex Zverev in the semi-final.
Djokovic has a 7-0 record over Hurkacz and 10-5 against Medvedev, 3-2 against Alcaraz, 8-4 against Zverev, and 4-2 against Sinner.
Latest In Sport
Fetching latest articles