Djokovic dispatches Hurkacz for 20th straight win, semis berth at Dubai championships
Serbian star will face former No. 1 Medvedev
Top-ranked Novak Djokovic beat Hubert Hurkacz 6-3, 7-5 on Thursday and will face former No. 1 Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals at the Dubai Championships.
"I'm playing good right now but when you play Novak, Novak is always the favourite," Medvedev said in his on-court interview. "He's playing great, moving great. I always had some good fights with him, so I'm hoping for my best shape tomorrow because that's the only way to beat him."
Djokovic is playing in his first event since winning the Australian Open for his record-equalling 22nd Grand Slam singles title. The 35-year-old Serb had a partially torn hamstring when he captured his 10th title at Melbourne Park.
Djokovic improved to 15-0 this season and hasn't lost since dropping the Paris Masters final to Holger Rune last November. He followed that up by winning the ATP Finals title in Turin.
Flying high 🪁<br><br>World No.1 <a href="https://twitter.com/DjokerNole?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@DjokerNole</a> booked his spot in the semi-finals of the <a href="https://twitter.com/atptour?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@atptour</a> 500 event in Dubai with a hard-fought victory over a spirited <a href="https://twitter.com/HubertHurkacz?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@HubertHurkacz</a>! 👏<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/DDFTennis?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#DDFTennis</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/ATP?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#ATP</a> <a href="https://t.co/sUXtrLuU1l">pic.twitter.com/sUXtrLuU1l</a>
—@DDFTennisRublev, Zverev to square off in semis
Defending Dubai champion Andrey Rublev will face Alexander Zverev in the other semifinal match.
Rublev advanced by defeating Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 7-6 (3). Zverev topped Lorenzo Sonego 7-5, 6-4.
"It's been a very difficult time for me the last, I would say, nine months," the 25-year-old German, who was the runner-up at the 2020 U.S. Open, said in his on-court interview. "The hard work is paying off and I'm extremely happy with what the progress is and how I'm playing right now."
Rublev, a 25-year-old Russian who is ranked No. 6, reached the semifinals for the third straight year.
