Five down, two to go.
With his impressive win over No. 6 seed Matteo Berrettini in the quarterfinals, Novak Djokovic is through to the semifinals of the 2021 US Open. In his path, he's also vanquished up-and-coming qualifier Holger Rune, 121st-ranked Tallon Griekspoor, former US Open finalist Kei Nishikori and breakout American wild card Jenson Brooksby. And while Rune, Nishikori, Brooksby and Berrettiniwere all able to take a set from Djokovic, the world No. 1 went into lockdown mode and did not lose another set in any of those five matches.
That leaves two victories standing between Djokovic and a date with history as the first player to win the calendar-year Grand Slam since Steffi Graf in 1988, and the first man to do so since Rod Laver in 1969, more than a half-century ago.
To put what Djokovic is trying to accomplish in perspective, the last player to advance to this stage was Serena Williams, who claimed the titles in Melbourne, Paris and Wimbledon in 2015 before falling to Roberta Vinci in a semifinal stunner at the Open. And she is the only player since Graf to make it to New York with the calendar Slam on the line. Moreover, the only other player to do so in the Open era is Margaret Court, who completed her Slam at the US Open in 1970.
Djokovic will take his next step toward the Slam on Friday against No. 4 seed Alexander Zverev. Here’s a closer look at that match—and the ensuing one that would await Djokovic as he chases tennis immortality.
Semifinals
Novak Djokovic vs. Alexander Zverev
Friday's semifinal matchup between Djokovic and Zverev is arguably the most anticipated tussle of the tournament. Zverev enters the semifinals with a perfect 16-0 on hard courts this summer. He beat Djokovic en route to the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics and also defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas and Andrey Rublev to win the US Open Series event in Cincinnati. The 24-year-old German has demonstrated excellent form in New York, dropping only one set thus far—to Jack Sock, who played an unconscious set of tennis to claim the opening frame of their third-round match. A finalist in last year's US Open, Zverev is in in position once again to contend for the US Open title.
Final
Winner of No. 2 Daniil Medvedev vs. No. 12 Felix Auger-Aliassime
The most likely scenario for Djokovic in the final is a rematch of the 2021 Australian Open final against Medvedev. The Russian entered the Open in fine form—having won the title in Toronto and reached the semifinals in Cincinnati during this summer’s US Open Series—and has picked right up where he left off in New York, blowing through the draw without the loss of a set; in fact, he has dropped a paltry 32 games thus far. The other favored contenders in this section, No. 3 seed Tsitsipas and No. 5 Rublev, were both upset, seemingly smoothing Medvedev’s path to a second US Open final (2019).
But he'll still have to get through Auger-Aliassime, the 21-year-old Canadian who has been billed as a potential US Open champion—and who could very well be living up to that billing at this year’s tournament. A Sunday matchup between FAA and Djokovic would be their first career meeting.
Conclusion
The US Open men’s draw has suffered its share of upsets, as it often does, but that has done little to clear the way for Djokovic. Zverev and Medvedev represent the most difficult opponents he could face in final two rounds, and both have the ability to unseat him. They have done so on big stages before, if never at a Grand Slam event.
Quite simply, if the 20-time major champion is to claim a record-setting No. 21 in New York, and with it the elusive Grand Slam, he will have to earn it.
