Novak Djokovic cruised past Lorenzo Musetti on Friday to secure a spot in the Wimbledon final against defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, bringing him one step closer to a record-setting 25th Grand Slam title.
Just five weeks after knee surgery, seven-time Wimbledon champion Djokovic reached his 10th final at the All England Club with a 6-4, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 victory over the Italian 25th seed.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, defeated Daniil Medvedev 6-7 (1/7), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 to reach his fourth Grand Slam final.
At 37, Djokovic could tie Roger Federer’s record of eight Wimbledon titles and become the tournament’s oldest champion in the modern era if he can avenge last year’s final loss to Alcaraz.
“I have said it many times, Wimbledon has been a childhood dream for me to play and to win,” said Djokovic, who left Serbia as a youth to train in Germany after escaping the NATO bombing of Serbia in the 1990s. “It is worth repeating: I was a seven-year-old boy watching the bombs fly over my head and dreaming of being on the most important court in the world, which is here at Wimbledon.”
In their last encounter at the French Open in June, Djokovic defeated Musetti in a third-round match that ended at 3:07 AM. On Friday, Djokovic faced little resistance as he reached his 37th Grand Slam final.
Djokovic broke for a 4-2 lead in the first set and, despite losing the advantage and missing two set points in the ninth game, broke again in the 10th to take the set.
The second seed, playing in his 49th Grand Slam semi-final, dominated the less experienced Musetti, who was in his first. Djokovic rebounded from losing serve in the opening game of the second set to level in the sixth, then dominated the tie-break.
A break in the opening game of the third set set Djokovic on his way to victory. Musetti saved three match points, but Djokovic ultimately advanced to yet another Wimbledon final.
“I feel a little sad, but I have to say Novak played an incredible match,” said Musetti. “He showed that he’s in great shape, not only in tennis but physically.”
He added: “We have played seven times, but I have never seen Novak play like this today.”
Alcaraz defeated Djokovic in the 2023 Wimbledon final in a five-set thriller.
“Obviously it will be a really difficult match,” said Alcaraz. “But I feel like I am not new anymore. I know how I am going to feel before the final. I have been in this position before.”
Alcaraz hit 55 winners to Medvedev’s 31 in his semi-final. Medvedev, frustrated by the Spaniard’s play, received a warning for unsportsmanlike conduct after a foul-mouthed reaction to a ball called for bouncing twice as he was broken in the ninth game. Despite the incident, Medvedev won the tie-break to take the first set.
Alcaraz, who had dropped the first set in three matches this Wimbledon, recovered to break Medvedev for a 3-1 lead in the second set after a 27-shot rally. He hit 14 winners in the third set and broke in the third game to take the set. Medvedev, who had ousted world number one Jannik Sinner in the quarter-finals, retrieved an early break in the fourth set but couldn’t stop Alcaraz from edging ahead and securing victory.
“Probably in my career he’s the toughest opponent I have faced. But I have time to try to do better,” said Medvedev after his fifth defeat in seven matches against Alcaraz.
