Perfect against Fritz, Djokovic Sets Sights on Alcaraz at US Open – Tennis Now

By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Tuesday September 2, 2025

New York — Novak Djokovic is still setting records at 38. On Tuesday night inside Arthur Ashe Stadium, the top seed battled past Taylor Fritz 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 to reach his 53rd Grand Slam semifinal — more than any man or woman in tennis history.

“It’s one of those days where you just have to grind, you know. You just have to play with your heart and fight. That’s what really gave me the win in the end,” Djokovic said after the match.

The win improves Djokovic’s lifetime record against Fritz to a flawless 11-0 and ties him with Jimmy Connors for most US Open semifinal appearances with 14. But it wasn’t all smooth sailing for the 24-time major champion.

Fritz had opportunities — so many of them — but faltered when it mattered most. The American failed to convert on his first ten break point opportunities and, even after finally cracking through for his first break of the night late in the second set, he immediately surrendered serve back to Djokovic, via double-fault. The chance to level the match slipped away, and Djokovic pounced to take a commanding two-set lead.

“To be honest, the fact I was 0 for 10, that actually almost sounds better for me than it really was, because that’s not counting how many times I had 15-30, Love-30, 30-All,” Fritz said after the match. “The fact that I was 0-10, that’s putting it nicely.”

The 27-year-old did claw back to take the third set and keep his hopes alive, but in the end nerves haunted him again. Serving at 4-5 in the fourth, Fritz saved two match points, only to double fault on the third, handing Djokovic the victory after three hours and 24 minutes.

“At the end of the day, that’s one of the things that makes the great players great,” Fritz reflected. “They win the big points, and that’s something that I kind of touched on before the match is that I’m going to need to go out and take those points from him. He’s not just going to hand them over to me. That’s exactly what happened. A lot of my weapons, aggressive shots were just not there, letting me down. So I felt like it was tough for me to go out and take those points.”

For Djokovic, the win sets up a blockbuster semifinal against Carlos Alcaraz, who swept past Jiri Lehecka earlier on Tuesday. Djokovic has won his last two meetings with the Spaniard and holds a 5-3 edge in their head-to-head, but Alcaraz has looked ruthless in New York, holding serve in 99 percent of his games across five matches without dropping a set.

At 38, Djokovic looked vulnerable at times against Fritz, and he’ll welcome the luxury of two full days of rest before Friday’s semifinal showdown.

“I don’t feel very fresh at the moment, but hopefully in two days it will be different,” he said. “Here we are. I have another chance, another shot. Hopefully, as I said, I can be fit enough and play well enough to keep up with Carlos. Then it can be anybody’s match.”