Six months later. Another Grand Slam. And once again, it’s Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. The last chapter ended in the Serbian’s favor at the Rod Laver Arena. This time, though, the Italian arrives ready to take the challenge head-on.

“If it’s Novak, um, I feel like every match is different. You know, even when I had, you know, this small streak with him, I felt like every match had its own story”, said Sinner in his post-match press conference.

He further shared his thoughts on how different it is to play on grass as compared to hard-court, and elaborated on how he’s planning to challenge the 24-time Grand Slam champion this time.

“And especially when you play on a surface like this, you know, if you have a bad serving day or um not feeling the ball very well, it’s going to be very, very tough, you know. So, in any case, I’m happy to be back in the semis. I’m happy to fight for every ball, and then we see, you know, I mean, more I cannot do, you know. So, um, he has won this tournament so many times, and he knows exactly how to approach it. Um, and I’m looking forward to it.”

However, Sinner’s serve could prove decisive against Novak Djokovic, especially on grass, where holding serve is often the key to success. The Serb’s serve was a major factor in his victory over the Italian in Melbourne, as he saved 14 of the 16 break points he faced.

Djokovic’s serve was equally effective in his quarterfinal win over Felix Auger-Aliassime, where he did not face a single break point in the deciding set.

On the other hand, Sinner’s serve proved to be Djokovic’s kryptonite during the World No.1’s five-match win streak.

Moreover, Sinner had consecutive Grand Slam semifinal victories over the Serb at the French Open and Wimbledon last year, leading the tennis world to conclude that the Italian had cracked the code against Djokovic. The Italian became only the second player, after Rafael Nadal, to inflict five successive losses on Djokovic.

However, Novak Djokovic also looks ready for the challenge and appears to be drawing confidence from his Melbourne triumph over Jannik Sinner.

Novak Djokovic is ready to face Jannik Sinner

If Sinner is ready to go into a head to head with Djokovic on Friday, the 39-year-old is not behind, as he was bullish after having played an epic quarterfinal, the longest in Wimbledon history. Djokovic boldly stated that he had beaten Sinner at a Grand Slam this year and was ready to repeat the feat at SW19.

“I’ve proven I can beat players 15 years younger than me. I am proving to myself and others that I’m capable of competing with the best players in the world and beating them on the biggest stages,” said Djokovic in his press conference. “That’s what I did in Australia. That’s what I’ve done here. I will try to do this again against Sinner.”

Djokovic’s campaign at Wimbledon has been choppy, as the Serb has had tricky four-set wins over Wu Yibing, Arthur Rinderknech, and Roman Safiullin, with all three matches going past the three-hour mark. With the Auger-Aliassime match added, the Serb has played over 17 hours of tennis at the event.

On the other hand, Sinner had to survive a five-set scare against Miomir Kecmanovic in the first round. However, the Italian’s form improved as the tournament went on, as he did not drop a set in his next four matches, including a straight-set victory over an in-form Jan-Lennard Struff in the quarterfinals.

With the top half of the draw playing ahead, the Sinner-Djokovic semifinal clash will potentially get the early Center Court slot on Friday, meaning playing under scorching London heat. With Sinner’s struggles in such conditions well known, and the Serb having played so much tennis in the event, the match will all be about endurance and which player can stay tough under pressure.

While Sinner is the defending champion, this match might be a major obstacle for Djokovic in his quest to win the 25th Major. With Carlos Alcaraz not being there, a win over Sinner will put the Serb in a very advantageous position to achieve history.