By Richard Pagliaro | @Tennis_Now | Friday, October 11, 2024
Photograph credit score: Rob Newell/CameraSport
Tennis is all about timing.
Dealing with Novak Djokovic is not a great time for Taylor Fritz.
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US Open finalist Fritz carries an ignominious 0-9 lifetime document vs. Grand Slam king Djokovic into their Rolex Shanghai Masters semifinal on Saturday.
In a few of these 9 conferences, Djokovic has smoked Fritz so completely—together with a 6-0, 6-4 sweep within the 2023 Cincinnati quarterfinals—it is a marvel the scalding did not depart burn marks.
Contemplate the very fact Djokovic performs a few of his greatest tennis in Asia and will likely be supremely motivated standing simply two match wins from a milestone a hundredth profession championship.
So why is Fritz optimistic about Saturday’s shot at four-time Shanghai champion Djokovic?
Contesting his fifth ATP Masters 1000 semifinal, Fritz has purpose to imagine in his type and his shot.
The seventh-seeded Fritz has not surrendered a set in 4 match wins, is serving sharply and empowered by the boldness that comes from his run to his maiden main ultimate in Flushing Meadows.
Whereas he wasn’t channeling Vitas Gerulatis’ famed “nobody beats Vitas Gerulaitis 17 occasions in a row” battle cry, Fritz feels he is due for the breakthrough.
“We performed plenty of occasions, and I’ve by no means gotten him, so I am actually, actually simply ready for that, you understand, excited for the prospect, and ready for that point when, you understand, possibly I can get a primary win on him,” Fritz stated of dealing with Djokovic. “So, that’s one thing I, you understand, I might be actually enthusiastic about.
“Clearly, extremely robust. I feel, it might be 0-10, however I feel it is 0-9 (smiling), however, you understand, hopefully one among these occasions I am due, as a result of I am solely getting higher and higher and, yeah, I am excited on the alternative to play him.”
The serve will likely be essential for Fritz, a pure ball-striker, who has been burned in working rallies by the 37-year-old Serbian famous person up to now.
In Djokovic’s three-set quarterfinal win over 19-year-old powerhouse baseliner Jakub Mensik right this moment, the previous world No. 1 received a majority of the longer rallies although he did tug at his left leg late within the third set.
“I imply, it is a unusual feeling, to be sincere, these couple of factors in that recreation, however after that it was effective,” Djokovic advised the media in Shanghai. “So, hopefully when it cools down I am not going to have any troubles with it, as a result of I have already got troubles with the precise knee, so it would not be nice. Yeah, let’s have a look at what tomorrow brings.”
Assuming Djokovic’s legs are effective, Fritz will want serve with command and play some durations of first-strike tennis as Djokovic is the superior all-court participant who’s extra harmful from extra areas of the courtroom. Fritz has fended off 9 of 12 break factors in his 4 Shanghai wins.
Fritz is fourth on the ATP Tour in service video games held this season (88 %) trailing solely world No. 1 Jannik Sinner, Alexander Zverev and Hubert Hurkacz in that very important class.
“I feel my serve’s at all times been an enormous a part of my recreation. It is at all times been, you understand, among the best, if not one of the best a part of my recreation,” Fritz advised the media in Shanghai. “However I feel on the whole this 12 months, this entire 12 months, I’ve felt like I have been in a greater rhythm with my serve.
“There’s been occasions the place it hasn’t felt possibly nearly as good as I would really like it to, however yeah, particularly within the final match after which this match, much more so within the second set of this match, yeah, I really feel like I am serving a great proportion and hitting spots very nicely.”
