Djokovic becomes oldest Masters semi-finalist in Miami, Mensik, Fritz through

 AFP | Miami

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Novak Djokovic turned on the style to take his place in the last four of the Miami Open with an impressive 6-3, 7-6 (7/4) win over American Sebastian Korda, becoming the oldest man to reach a Masters 1000 semi-final.

The 37-year-old Serb made a strong start against Korda, breaking early to get a first set advantage that he never let slip but Korda showed great resilience in the second set, taking the contest to a tie-break.

But the fourth seed, looking for his seventh Miami Open title but first since 2016, again came up strong, sealing the win with a powerful ace.

Djokovic, who was set to face Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, had no doubt what had been the key to his success after winning 84% of his first-serve points.

“One word, serve. I was serving very well, probably the best serving performance, not just here, but in a long time,” he told reporters.

“Eleven aces, when I needed to find the first serve. It makes life easier on the court when you are feeling your serve. I needed it in the second set when I think Korda was feeling his ground strokes much better.”

A victory at Miami would be a landmark 100th singles title for the 24-time Grand Slam champion and he said he’s glad to be refinding a top level.

“I am obviously playing the best tennis I have played in quite some time. It’s great when I experience tournaments like this and performances like this. It motivates me and encourages me to keep going for more,” he said.

Czech teenager Jakub Mensik marched into his first Masters semi when he defeated France’s Arthur Fils 7-6 (7/5), 6-1.

Fils had enjoyed one of the biggest wins of his career on Wednesday when he defeated top seed Alexander Zverev but he struggled to repeat the feat against the impressive 19-yearold Mensik.

The towering Czech’s big serve was too much for Fils, who had come through threeset battles with Frances Tiafoe and Zverev and showed signs of tiredness.

“It feels incredible. I think the biggest result so far in my career, so I’m glad I just kept going since the first round,” said Mensik.