At 38 years of age, Novak Djokovic is about to play a 53rd Grand Slam semifinal as he continues his bid for a record-breaking 25th major title.
After coming through his quarterfinal clash with Taylor Fritz, Djokovic is now faced with Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals of the US Open.
The Serb has triumphed over the Spaniard in their last two meetings, the most recent of which came at the Australian Open earlier this season.
Now, the two will face off for the ninth time in their careers, with a place in the final at Flushing Meadows up for grabs, which former champion Andy Roddick says could be determined by the New York crowd.
Andy Roddick previews Novak Djokovic’s clash with Carlos Alcaraz
Previewing the semifinal on ‘Served’, Roddick said: “It’s gonna be interesting. Like Carlos, I don’t know that I’ve seen a global fandom gravitate to a player like they have with Carlos. Even Roger had to work for it until, you know, he owned everyone’s hearts.
“I think it’s gonna be chippy. I think if, you know, they come out in the crowds for Carlos, there is no one who craves that situation more on Earth than Novak Djokovic. He will pick a fight to win a fight. I think it’s going to be amazing theatre.
“I’ve said this before on the show: one of the craziest things I’ve ever seen is in 2021 when Novak was in the final against Daniil Medvedev.
“He was going for the year slam, right? Where you win all four slams in the same year. Everyone wanted to be in the building when that happened for the first time since 1969, with Rod Laver on the men’s side.
“The support for Novak was so overwhelming that day, and it was almost as if he didn’t know what to do with it.
“Honestly, like, if he gets in and it’s chippy, I think that’s better for Novak. I think he wants to make this about emotion, about angst. He is the best we’ve ever seen in those types of situations.”
Novak Djokovic has reached the most major semifinals of any player in history
Djokovic‘s meeting with Alcaraz in the US Open semifinal will see the seventh seed make history once again.
With 53 final four appearances at majors in his career, he now has the most of any man or woman all time, surpassing Chris Evert.
Trailing Djokovic are legends such as Roger Federer with 46, Martina Navratilova with 44, and Serena Williams with 40.
He will now hope to go one step further in the Big Apple with a win over Alcaraz, who has yet to drop a set at the tournament so far.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
