Novak Djokovic reaches a record 14th Wimbledon semifinal and faces No. 1 Jannik Sinner next
London (AP): At least Novak Djokovic could laugh about it immediately afterward.
Yes, he took what he called a “nasty” and “awkward” fall on his second match point at Wimbledon on Wednesday. Yes, he slid into the splits and ended up face-down on the Centre Court grass. And, yes, those sorts of things aren't ideal for a 38-year-old seeking an unprecedented 25th Grand Slam title.
Still, Djokovic dusted himself off and took the next two points, reaching the semifinals at the All England Club for a men's-record 14th time with a 6-7 (6), 6-2, 7-5, 6-4 victory over No. 22 seed Flavio Cobolli to set up a showdown against No. 1 Jannik Sinner.
“Obviously, (my) body is not the same today like it was before,” Djokovic said at his news conference, “so I guess the real impact or effect of what happened, I will feel tomorrow. So let's see. I'm hoping in the next 24, 48 hours, that the severity of ... what happened is not too bad, that I'll be able to play at my best and free of pain in two days."
That's when he will take on three-time major champion Sinner, who didn't play like someone dealing with an injured right elbow while using terrific serving and his usual booming forehand to beat 10th-seeded Ben Shelton 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-4.
“It's going to take the best of me at the moment to beat Jannik. I mean, I know that,” said Djokovic, who has lost his last four meetings with Sinner, including in the French Open semifinals last month.
Djokovic is 2-0 against Sinner at Wimbledon, eliminating him in the 2023 semifinals and 2022 quarterfinals.
Against Cobolli — like Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy — the late-match tumble was not the only thing that was far from smooth for Djokovic. He served for the opening set at 5-3 but got broken at love. He later was a point from owning that set before first-time major quarterfinalist Cobolli came through.
Djokovic did stretches and breathing exercises at changeovers. He whacked his shoe with his racket after one miss in the fourth set. He seemed bothered at times by the bright sun above Centre Court.
He also showed off all of his considerable skills, accumulating 13 aces, holding in 19 of 21 service games, using a drop-shot-lob-drop-shot combination to take one point and limiting his unforced errors to 22 — half as many as Cobolli.
On Friday, Djokovic will try to reach his seventh consecutive final at the All England Club and get closer to equaling Roger Federer's men's mark of eight trophies there. The other men's semifinal is two-time defending champion Carlos Alcaraz, who defeated Djokovic in the 2023 and 2024 finals, against Taylor Fritz.
The women's semifinals Thursday are Aryna Sabalenka vs. Amanda Anisimova, and Iga Swiatek vs. Belinda Bencic.
Against Shelton at No. 1 Court, Sinner wore a white sleeve on his right arm with strips of tape visible underneath — one above the elbow, one below it — after he was hurt when he fell in the opening game of his fourth-round match against Grigor Dimitrov on Monday.
Sinner, the runner-up to Alcaraz at Roland-Garros, had an MRI exam on Tuesday and initially canceled a practice session that day but did hit some balls in a 20-minute session at an indoor court later.
“When you are in a match with a lot of tension, you try to not think about it,” Sinner said. “It has improved a lot from yesterday to today.”
He played as though nothing were amiss, grabbing 27 of 29 service points in the first set while accumulating a total of 15 winners to just one unforced error.
“You can't go into a match thinking that the guy's not going to be at 100%,” Shelton said. “His ball was coming off pretty big today, so I didn't see any difference.”
Shelton stayed right with him until 2-all in the tiebreaker. That's when Sinner surged in front, helped by a double-fault and four consecutive forehand errors by Shelton.
At the outset of the second set, Shelton finally made some headway in a return game, getting a pair of break points at 15-40.
On one, Sinner produced a forehand winner. On the other, he pounded a 132 mph serve — his fastest of the match — and rushed forward, getting to deuce when Shelton's backhand pass attempt found the net. That was followed by a 118 mph ace and a 125 mph service winner.
Those were Shelton's only break chances.
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Umpire dies, 15-20 players injured in bee attack during cricket match in Unnao
Unnao/Kanpur (UP) (PTI): A 65-year-old umpire died while several players were injured after a swarm of bees attacked them during a cricket match in Unnao district, police said on Thursday.
A top office-bearer of the Kanpur Cricket Association, which organised the game, confirmed the incident that took place at Sapru Maidan in the Shuklaganj area on Wednesday evening.
According to police officials, Manik Gupta from Kanpur was officiating as the umpire of the cricket match when a swarm of bees suddenly attacked the players and officials present on the ground, triggering panic. Players and spectators ran for cover to save themselves.
Eyewitnesses said Gupta sustained serious injuries in the attack and fell unconscious. He was initially taken to a private hospital in Shuklaganj and later referred to Lala Lajpat Rai Hospital in Kanpur as his condition deteriorated. Doctors at this hospital declared him dead.
Another umpire and around 15 to 20 players also suffered bee stings, police said.
In an official confirmation of the incident, S N Singh, president of the Kanpur Cricket Association, told PTI that umpire Manik Gupta died after being attacked by a swarm of bees during a cricket match in Unnao.
When Gupta was being rushed to the hospital, bees were still clinging to his face and body, Singh said, underscoring the intensity of the attack.
He conveyed heartfelt condolences on behalf of the association, stating that it stands firmly with the bereaved family in this hour of grief.
