Novak Djokovic's dream of securing his 8th title on the hallowed grass courts of Wimbledon - and a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam title - met with a big blow after a humbling 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 defeat by Jannik Sinner in the semifinals at Centre Court on Friday night. Sinner’s victory put him into his first Wimbledon final and set up a rematch of last month’s epic French Open showpiece, where he lost in five sets to Carlos Alcaraz after leading by two sets and seeing three championship points saved. Alcaraz is now into his third straight Wimbledon final and is on the verge of notching up a hat-trick of titles.

Djokovic came into the semifinal after suffering a nasty fall on match point against Flavio Cobolli, raising concerns about his fitness. Although he got a day’s break, he seemed not to have fully recovered from the blow. Djokovic even missed a planned practice session ahead of the semifinal.

In the match against Sinner, something similar and unfortunate happened on court. From start to finish, Sinner was clinical. In the second game of the second set, after almost helplessly watching a backhand winner go past his reach, Djokovic nodded his head, almost in acknowledgment of the superiority of his opponent.

From the moment he took the early break in the third game of the first set up until the end of the second, Sinner gave Djokovic - who tried everything, including serve and volley - no room to even get on level footing. Djokovic’s left leg - the same one that raised injury concerns in the quarterfinal - was then subject to a medical timeout, which briefly brought him to life. His early break, though, was soon struck off. And when Sinner broke him again - ironically, after a failed serve-and-volley attempt - the contest was put to bed. This was Djokovic's second straight semifinal loss to Sinner, who also got the better of him in straight sets at the French Open semifinals.

This defeat also perhaps marked the beginning of a new era - especially at Wimbledon, where Djokovic used to have the edge over Sinner, having defeated him in 2022 and 2023, but no longer.

The Italian youngster apologised to Djokovic about that fall when the two met at the net following match point. When Djokovic was asked about the moment after the match, he said, “He (Sinner) apologised for me feeling bad today. There is nothing to apologise for from his side.”

'Best Player In the World'

Djokovic went on to hail Sinner as the “best player in the world” at the moment and wished him good luck ahead of his maiden Wimbledon final.

“Obviously he has done very well for himself today, and for the last year and a half he has been the best player in the world. He is gonna have a chance to win his first Wimbledon title. I wished him luck, it is gonna be his first final here and I am sure he is going to be super pumped,” stated Djokovic.

Reflecting on the final to be played between Sinner and Alcaraz, Djokovic said, “After the finals they played in Paris, I think the anticipation for this final is big. It is amazing. They are definitely several levels above everyone right now.”

Sinner is now set to face off against Alcaraz in the final on Sunday - their second straight Grand Slam final after the French Open just over a month ago. Back then, Sinner conceded the match despite cruising two sets up.