Geneva
Novak Djokovic celebrated his 38th birthday with a strong win at the Geneva Open. He defeated Italy’s Matteo Arnaldi 6-4, 6-4 to reach the semi-finals of the clay ATP 250 tournament. This is the second year in a row Djokovic has made it to the semis in Geneva.
Djokovic lost to Arnaldi in Madrid last month but got his revenge in Geneva. He was down 1-4 in the second set but won five games in a row to close out the match in one hour and 40 minutes.
After the match, Djokovic said, “It’s great to be in the semi-finals again. I hope I can go further this time. I played well and stayed calm when it mattered.”
Djokovic is now just two wins away from earning his 100th tour-level title. Only Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103) have reached 100 titles in the Open Era.
He will next face qualifier Cameron Norrie, who beat fifth seed Alexei Popyrin 7-6(6), 6-4. This is Norrie’s ninth semi-final on clay and his first since last year in Rio.
In the other half of the draw, Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz beat top seed Taylor Fritz 6-3, 7-6(5). Hurkacz played strong under pressure and won with a key ace in the tie-break.
Hurkacz will now face Sebastian Ofner, who came back to beat fourth seed Karen Khachanov 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. Ofner is chasing his second ATP final appearance.