Novak Djokovic has entered the final at the ATP 250 event in Geneva, defeating Brit Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-7(6), 6-1.
The victory means that the former world No 1 is just one match away from claiming a 100th singles title, a milestone which has only been reached by Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103).
In that final, Djokovic will face Hubert Hurkacz, who defeated Sebastian Ofner 6-3, 6-4 earlier on Friday.
The Serb will likely fancy his chances against the Pole, dominating their head-to-head by 7-0.
“It was the toughest match of the tournament for me,” admitted the former world No 1.
“Three sets, second set he was a break-up and I managed to come back to the tiebreak.
“Match point, I got a bit tight there and missed a couple of mid-court shots, but I’m really glad at how I re-grouped in the third, and played my best set of the tournament.
“It means a lot, so let’s go for the title.”
For the match, Djokovic hit 34 winners and conceded 25 unforced errors, winning 23 more points overall than the Brit.
The 24-time Grand Slam champion won a healthy 87% of his first-serve points, and 60% second-serve points.
On the other hand, Norrie hit 24 winners and 31 unforced error in the 133-minute battle.
Whilst Djokovic will be in a prime position in the Geneva final, he has been in a similar position twice previously in the last seven months.
In the 2024 Shanghai Masters final, the Serb put up a solid fight against world No 1 Jannik Sinner – ultimately losing out 7-6(4), 6-3.
At the Miami Open tournament, he, once again, reached the showpiece match where he was defeated by Jakub Mensik, 7-6(4), 7-6(4).
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Before the Miami final, Djokovic was clear that a 100th title was one of his biggest goals.
“Ever since I won my 99th, which was the Olympic Games in Paris, I’ve been playing with the prospect of winning the special hundred titles,” admitted the former world No 1.
“I played finals of Shanghai. I was close there. Semi-finals of Australia. Then been trying to find that necessary and much-needed level of tennis that will put me in a position to fight for a trophy, a big trophy.”
No matter the result in Geneva, the three-time French Open champion will have to be in top form to contend at the Parisian Grand Slam.
Djokovic will open his campaign against Mackenzie McDonald, before likely facing crowd-favourite Corentin Moutet in the second round, and Denis Shapovalov in the third round.
From there – if all of the respective seeds survive in the tournament – the Serb would have to defeat Daniil Medvedev, Alexander Zverev, Jannik Sinner, and Carlos Alcaraz to lift a fourth title in Paris.
If Djokovic does manage to go all the way at the second Grand Slam of the year, he would collect his 25th title at that level – an achievement which has never been reached by any player, male or female.
The former world No 1’s last Grand Slam victory came at the 2023 US Open, where he defeated Daniil Medvedev in the final.
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