Top seed Novak Djokovic came through a gruelling four-set contest with American Taylor Fritz to reach the semi-finals of the Australian Open.

Djokovic, who is seeking a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title and 11th at Melbourne Park, wore Fritz down to win 7-6 (7-3) 4-6 6-2 6-3 in three hours and 45 minutes.

The Serb appeared to be in a real tussle when his inability to take advantage of 15 break points across the first two sets allowed Fritz to level the match after two sets that had taken a combined total of two hours and 23 minutes.

However, the American was unable to sustain what had been a hugely impressive level, and Djokovic broke twice in each of the final two sets to close out the match.

Djokovic will face either fourth seed Jannik Sinner or fifth seed Andrey Rublev in the last four, with the pair set for a late finish as the night session began more than two hours later than its scheduled 7pm start time due to both daytime matches on Rod Laver Arena going long.

The 36-year-old has now won 33 successive matches at the Australian Open, with his last defeat at the tournament having come in 2018. Djokovic was unable to defend his title in 2022 due to his coronavirus vaccination status.

Djokovic’s appearance in the semi-finals will be his 48th at a Grand Slam, extending a record he took sole ownership of on his way to winning the US Open in September.

More to follow…

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