Fortune is smiling on Novak Djokovic at the Australian Open.
The fourth-seeded Serbian was down two sets to none in the quarterfinals on Wednesday in Melbourne when his opponent, fifth-seeded Lorenzo Musetti of Italy, retired due to an injury.
Musetti was ahead 6-4, 6-3, 1-2 when he got hurt and used a medical timeout to receive treatment on his right thigh. He tried to continue but lost the next game before halting the match.
Djokovic said postmatch, ” I feel really sorry for him. He was a far better player, I was on my way home tonight.
“I don’t know what to say. These kinds of things happen in sport. It happened to me a few times, but being in the quarters of a Grand Slam, two sets to love up, and being in full control, I mean, so unfortunate. I don’t know what else I can say. I wish him a speedy recovery. And he should have been the winner today, there’s no doubt.”
The result means Djokovic, a 10-time Australian Open champion, is through to the semifinals even though he hasn’t won a set since the third round. He received a fourth-round walkover when 16th-seeded Jakub Mensik, a Czech, withdrew due to an abdominal injury.
Djokovic, 38, is now two match victories away from capturing his 25th career Grand Slam title, which would break a tie with Margaret Court for the most in tennis history.
Next up for Djokovic is No. 2 seed and two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner of Italy, who cruised to a 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 victory over eighth-seeded American Ben Shelton on Wednesday night.
Sinner improved to 9-1 against Shelton, including 4-0 in majors. The four-time Grand Slam champion saved all four break points and finished with only 16 unforced errors, fewer than half of Shelton’s total of 34.
“It is very tough to play against Ben,” Sinner said. “He has a huge, huge serve and I feel like he is improving so much, year after year. Especially after the offseason, you don’t know how certain players are going to play against you and change lots of things. I am very happy with today’s performance.”
Sinner has gotten the better of Djokovic in previous semifinal encounters at Grand Slam events, defeating him in that round in Melbourne in 2025 and at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in 2025.
“These are the moments you practice for,” Sinner said on facing Djokovic. “I will wake up in the morning and will look forward to playing a good match hopefully. If you want to win you have to play at your best. In the past I have had great lessons and it doesn’t really matter the result, it improves you as a player and a person. We are lucky to still have Novak here, playing incredible tennis at his age.”
–Field Level Media
