Sinner stops Novak in Roland Garros semifinal – Novak Djokovic

Novak will not be contending for his fourth Roland Garros crown and 25th Grand Slam title overall, this Sunday in Paris.

The world No. 1, Jannik Sinner, ended the Serbian star’s run with a straight-sets victory in the semifinals of the French Open: 6–4, 7–5, 7–6(3), after three hours and 16 minutes of high-quality tennis.

Novak had his chances throughout the match, but it was the unforced errors, more than 50 of them, that ultimately tilted the balance in Sinner’s favor.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion started the match solidly, holding serve with ease. But a string of errors followed, and Sinner capitalized in the fifth game to earn the crucial break. Djokovic never quite found his rhythm in the opening set—particularly on serve—and the Italian wrapped it up 6–4 after 48 minutes.

Djokovic raised his level in the second set, tightening up his service games and taking more initiative in the rallies. He looked closer to breaking, but Sinner held firm at key moments. At 4–3, the top seed broke and served for the set at 5–4. Djokovic then responded with his first break of the match to level at 5–5. However, despite leading 40–15 in the next game, the Serbian dropped serve again, and Sinner sealed the set 7–5.

The third set brought Djokovic’s biggest opportunity to turn things around. Leading 5–4, he earned three set points on Sinner’s serve. But the Italian showed nerves of steel, saving all three and leveling at 5–5. The set moved into a tiebreak, where Sinner maintained his momentum, closing it out 7–3 to book his spot in Sunday’s final.

Despite the loss, Djokovic’s run to a record-extending 51st Grand Slam semifinal will see him climb one spot in the ATP rankings on Monday, moving up to No. 5 with 4,630 points.

Sinner will face second seed Carlos Alcaraz in the Roland Garros final.

Photo: Profimedia