Novak Djokovic powered into his ninth Wimble-don final as the fiery defending champion feuded with the umpire and spectators before beating Jannik Sinner to reach a record 35th Grand Slam singles title match on Friday.
Djokovic was in combative mood during a 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7/4) semi-final victory that moved him closer to a record-equalling eighth Wimbledon title.
The 36-year-old faces world number one Carlos Alcaraz or Russian third seed Daniil Medvedev in his fifth successive Wimbledon final on Sunday.
“Semi-finals are always going to be very in-tense. Maybe the scoreline doesn’t give the reality of what happened on court. It was super close,” Djokovic said.
On his row with umpire Richard Haigh, who stripped him of a point after he made a loud yell in the middle of a rally, Djokovic said: “The hindrance could have changed the course of the match. I felt nervous after that call, but I managed to re-group.
“It’s probably the first time it’s happened to me, I don’t normally have extended grunts. Maybe it was an echo in the roof.”—AFP
