Serbia’s Novak Djokovic reacts during his Australian Open quarter final match against Germany’s Alexander Zverev in Melbourne February 17, 2021. — Reuters picMELBOURNE, Feb 18 — Novak Djokovic will look to stay on track for an 18th Grand Slam title, while Serena Williams has the formidable figure of Naomi Osaka blocking her path to a record-equalling 24th when the Australian Open semi-finals begin today.
“He’s impressed a lot of people with his movement and firepower from the baseline,” said Djokovic of Karatsev.Karatsev, who is guaranteed to rise into the world’s top 50, is the first man in the Open era to reach a semi-final on his Grand Slam debut, and just the second qualifier to do so at the Australian Open after Bob Giltinan in 1977.
One of those was the controversial 2018 US Open final defeat to Osaka, where the American star was docked a point and a game after losing her temper when warned about coaching. They have played each other just once since that New York meeting, in the quarter-finals of the 2019 Rogers Cup in Toronto which Williams won in straight sets.