Doubt surrounded the fitness of Novak Djokovic ahead of Friday’s blockbuster Wimbledon semi-final against Jannik Sinner.
The 38-year-old suffered an awkward fall very late on in his quarter-final victory over Flavio Cobolli on Wednesday.
He picked himself up to finish off the four-set victory but admitted afterwards he would likely not know the full effect until Thursday, and the signs did not appear positive when Djokovic first delayed and then cancelled his scheduled practice session at the All England Club.
The Serbian has already been forced to pull out of one grand slam tournament this year with injury, failing to complete his semi-final against Alexander Zverev at the Australian Open because of a leg problem.
After beating Cobolli, he cited the battle just to keep himself physically able to compete with Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz as his biggest challenge.
“Sometimes I get tired of all the chores that I have to do on a daily basis to get my body ready to be able to perform,” he said.
“It’s a lot of hours spent off the court, in the gym or on the table just trying to work with what I have.
“Physically, I hope that I’ll be able to sustain that. That’s more of a concern. I think game-wise, the way I’m feeling the ball when I’m fit and ready, I feel like I can go toe to toe with those guys and even beat them if I’m playing my best.”
Ahead of the quarter-finals, the concern had been over Sinner after he sustained an elbow problem in a fall against Grigor Dimitrov before the unlucky Bulgarian was forced to pull out leading by two sets to love with a muscle injury.
But the Italian played at a high level to defeat Ben Shelton and, although he was still wearing a protective sleeve, he completed a relaxed practice session on Thursday.
Even if Djokovic is fully fit, he will go into the clash as the underdog having not beaten Sinner since 2023 and on a run of four straight losses to the Italian, including in the last four at the Australian Open last year and French Open last month.
Their match in Paris was close but Sinner was the stronger at the big moments, and Djokovic said: “I get another opportunity. For me, this is what counts actually the most.
“Being in the last stages of grand slams and playing against the best player in the world right now. Him next to Alcaraz are the leaders of men’s tennis today.”
Sinner is bidding to reach a first Wimbledon final – as well as a fourth grand slam decider in a row – and will be looking for a first win on grass against Djokovic having lost to him here in both 2022 and 2023.
The other semi-final will pit two-time defending champion Alcaraz against fifth seed Taylor Fritz, who is through to the last four here for the first time.
Fritz already has a grand slam final under his belt having lost to Sinner in New York last year and was one of two American men to make the last eight along with Shelton.
It is now 22 years since Andy Roddick became the last US man to lift a grand slam singles title, with Fritz the only American even to make a final since Roddick here in 2009.
Former top-10 star James Blake can empathise with his compatriots, saying: “Andy and I competed in a generation where there were some greedy guys out there in Novak and Rafa (Nadal) and Roger (Federer).
“These guys are in a generation where they’ve got two generational talents as well. Andy is tired of his name being the answer to every trivia question.”
Blake believes Fritz can be the man to end the drought, adding: “He’s won a lot of matches and he’s as confident as he’s ever been on grass. He’s said very clearly his goal is to win a grand slam. I think he’s really pushing towards that.
“He knows going into these matches that he’s got to beat at least one of those guys, maybe two. Those guys have a gear that’s possibly higher but, if he can find a way to break through that and get a win, if he has to win ugly, he’ll do it.”
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