NO-one likes him, he doesn’t care. Novak Djokovic admitted last night that gesturing sarcastically and cupping his ears at the Centre Court crowd had helped him subdue a stubborn opponent in the form of Roberto Bautista-Agut of Spain to play his way into his 25th Grand Slam final.
With the pair splitting the first two sets, this match hung in the balance at the opening stages of the third but typically it was Djokovic who found the solution to the problems posed by the unfussy, almost robotic style of a Spaniard who had won both their meetings on the tour this year. Bautista-Agut’s first Grand Slam semi-final had come at the expense of his own bachelor party in Ibiza and ultimately his party was spoiled by the Serbian World No 1 by a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 scoreline.
“I focused on what I needed to do,” said Djokovic, who also admitted he now eats a vegan-style diet. “At times they [the crowd] wanted him to come back to the match, and maybe take a lead because he was an underdog in the match. I understand that. But I’ve had enough support here over the years, so I don’t complain. You go through these kind of emotional moments, especially in big matches like this, all the time. I mean, at least on my side.”
With the level-headed, consistent play of the Spaniard earning him the Serb’s applause on countless occasions, Djokovic was complimentary of the level of play produced by a man on his first major semi-final. The pair delighted the crowd at one point with a 45-shot rally. “I had to dig deep,” said the Serb. “Roberto was playing his first semi-final but he wasn’t overwhelmed by the stadium and the occasion. In the first set, he was still managing his experience but he established himself, started to play better placed his serves nicely and opened up the points. Things were very close in the opening four or five games of the third set, that is when the match could have gone whether way. I am glad that it went my way.”
“It won’t be the first time playing against Federer on the Centre Court. I’ve had that experience more than once. I’m going to go out there and fight and give it my all.”
Bautista-Agut said it had been a pleasant surprise that the six of his friends who were in Ibiza for his stag do had arrived in London to watch the match. “ It was really nice to have them in the crowd,” the Spaniard said. “They support me so much. Well, now I think I deserve some vacations. So we will have some time off after that. I think they really had a good plan. They spend Wednesday in Ibiza. They came to watch a good match, the semifinal of Wimbledon. Maybe tomorrow we go back to Ibiza.”
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