World No. 1 Novak Djokovic sent a message loud and clear on Saturday: he is back in top form.

Djokovic reached his third Mutua Madrid Open final by beating fifth seed Dominic Thiem 7-6(2), 7-6(4). The Serbian, who is into his first final since triumphing at the Australian Open, ended the recent Barcelona champion’s eight-match winning streak, eliminating the Austrian after a physical baseline battle that lasted two hours and 22 minutes.

“I played the best match of the clay-court season so far, for me, against arguably the best tennis player in the world on this surface, so far [this season]” said Djokovic. “[Dominic] had an amazing tournament in Barcelona and here he beat Roger yesterday in a thrilling match. So, he was in form… I just managed to hold my nerves and play the best when it was most needed.”

The two-time Madrid champion, who had made just one quarter-final in three tournaments since his Melbourne win, is trying to tie Rafael Nadal’s record of 33 ATP Masters 1000 titles. When Djokovic has won a semi-final at the Caja Magica (2011 and 2016), he has gone on to lift the trophy each time. The Serbian will face World No. 2 Rafael Nadal or reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas on Sunday.

Early on, Thiem appeared to be riding the momentum from his thrilling quarter-final victory against Roger Federer, using his power to overwhelm Djokovic for an early break. But the top seed remained calm and raised his level to match Thiem’s push, showing incredible defence to earn his first break point. Djokovic didn’t waste the opportunity, as Thiem missed an inside-in forehand from a tough position to give back the break.

Thiem earned two more opportunities to break Djokovic at 4-4, and a second time violation assessed to the Serbian forced Djokovic to defend the first of those chances on his second serve. But the top seed again raised his level to hold serve. And in the eventual tie-break, Djokovic’s defence was too strong, forcing Thiem into unforced errors.

But the physicality of Thiem’s baseline game seemingly began to wear down Djokovic’s defences, as he broke for 4-2 in the second set after a game that lasted more than 10 minutes. But in the next game Djokovic put immediate pressure back on the Austrian with returns that landed near the baseline to get back on serve.

The twists and turns continued as the World No. 1 served for the match at 6-5, but double faulted his advantage away. However, Djokovic maintained his focus in the tie-break and moved through to the championship match at his first opportunity when Thiem mishit a backhand well out.

Thiem had won the pair’s past two FedEx ATP Head2Head meetings, which both came on clay (2017 Roland Garros and 2018 Monte-Carlo), but Djokovic now has a 6-2 edge in their rivalry.

“I never complain about [reaching an ATP Masters] 1000 semi-final. It’s a very good result,” said Thiem. “I beat three very good players and I lost [in two tie-break sets] to Djokovic… It was a very good tournament and now I will enjoy the doubles [semi-final].”

Did You Know?
Djokovic now owns 199 wins against Top 10 opponents (199-90). That is more victories against the elite group than the other three Madrid semi-finalists combined (189-133).

The Internazionali BNL d’Italia is the third of three clay-court ATP Masters 1000 tennis tournaments, following the Rolex Monte-Carlo Masters and Mutua Madrid Open.

An 18-year-old Rafael Nadal won his first Rome title in 2005 by defeating Guillermo Coria in a memorable five hour, 14 minute final. Last year, the Spaniard lifted the trophy at the Foro Italico for a record eighth time with victory over defending champion Alexander Zverev. 

Nadal and Djokovic shared 11 straight trophies from 2005-2015, with the Serbian winning four times (2008, 2001, 2014-15).

Read: Rome Draw Preview | What You Need To Know

Novak Djokovic battles Dominic Thiem and Rafael Nadal squares off with Stefanos Tsitsipas in a blockbuster semi-final line up on Saturday at the Mutua Madrid Open. The Madrid semi-finals are the first this year to have all four players inside the Top 10 of the ATP Rankings.

Top seed Djokovic was given an extra day of recovery after ninth seed Marin Cilic withdrew from their quarter-final due to food poisoning. The two-time Madrid champion hasn’t dropped a set this week and has started to show the form that has seen him dominate the ATP Tour for nearly a full calendar year. He’s also far more familiar with the business stage of Masters 1000 events than his opponent. The Serbian is competing in his 64th Masters 1000 semi-final, compared to six for Thiem.

Who will win the latest @FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting between these players?#MMOPEN

— ATP Tour (@ATP_Tour) May 11, 2019

Although Thiem trails his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Djokovic 2-5, he has won their past two matches and both were on clay. The fifth seed dug deep to save two match points in his thrilling quarter-final victory over fourth seed Roger Federer and will be brimming with confidence after his great escape. Having finished runner-up the past two years in Madrid, the Austrian knows what it takes to excel at this event and will be eager to move one step closer to his first clay-court Masters 1000 title.

“He was not at his best [when we last played] and now he is again. He’s won the last three Slams and he is at the top of the [ATP Rankings]. The challenge couldn’t be bigger,” said Thiem. “This is a very tough tournament because I’ve only faced good players and tomorrow is another one. I’ll try to keep up my good momentum which I have now and give my best again.”

Second seed Nadal leads his FedEx ATP Head2Head rivalry with Tsitsipas 3-0 and has claimed all three wins in the past 13 months. The Spaniard has yet to drop a set against last year’s Next Gen ATP Finals champion and will take confidence from his previous success as he pursues his 50th Masters 1000 final. Court Manolo Santana has become backyard territory for Nadal as the five-time champion gets ready for his 11th semi-final at this event.

Although Nadal arrived in Madrid without a title during the first four months of the season for the first time since 2004, his clay-court prowess has been in full flight this week. He’s dropped just 16 games in three rounds and looked particularly impressive in his quarter-final win over Stan Wawrinka. Nadal has won 96 per cent of his service games (26/27) while leading the tournament in return games won with 40 per cent (10/25).

But eighth seed Tsitsipas has earned a reputation for thriving on playing in big stadiums against the world’s best players. The Greek star has won more matches (26) than anyone else in 2019 and is just one match away from his fourth ATP Tour final of the season.

“He’s a young player. He has a lot of potential, a lot of energy. He’s playing well [and] has won a lot of matches in a row. It’s going to be one of these matches that is an opportunity,” said Nadal. “He’s been playing well recently and it is an opportunity to test my level of game and to confirm those good feelings that I have had today on the court.”

Thiem will also take the court for his doubles semi-final with Argentine Diego Schwartzman as they play the Argentine-Portuguese combination of Guido Pella and Joao Sousa.

ORDER OF PLAY – SATURDAY, MAY 11, 2019
MANOLO SANTANA start 1:30 pm
WTA match
Not Before 4:00 pm
[1] Novak Djokovic (SRB) vs [5] Dominic Thiem (AUT)
Not Before 6:30 pm
WTA match
Not Before 9:00 pm
[8] Stefanos Tsitsipas (GRE) vs [2] Rafael Nadal (ESP)

ARANTXA SANCHEZ NB 5:00 pm
Dominic Thiem (AUT) / Diego Schwartzman (ARG) vs Guido Pella (ARG) / Joao Sousa (POR)

Rafael Nadal will compete in his 11th Mutua Madrid Open semi-final after ousting former World No. 3 Stan Wawrinka 6-1, 6-2 on Friday.

It will be Nadal’s record 70th ATP Masters 1000 semi-final, as he looks to extend his record number of trophies at the elite level to 34. The second seed has emerged victorious five times in Madrid, and he will try to move one step closer to another triumph on Saturday against reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semi-finals on Saturday.

Most ATP Masters 1000 Semi-finals

Wawrinka earned one of his three FedEx ATP Head2Head wins against the Spaniard at the Caja Magica four years ago. But Nadal was ruthless in the last match of the day, breaking the Swiss star’s serve four times to advance after one hour and eight minutes. Nadal now leads Wawrinka 18-3 in their rivalry, and all 18 of his wins have come in straight sets.

Nadal has made the semi-finals of four consecutive tournaments (also Indian Wells, Monte-Carlo, Barcelona), and he is pursuing his first tour-level final since the Australian Open (l. to Djokovic). The 32-year-old is trying to capture an ATP Tour crown for the 16th consecutive year, dating back to his first title at 2004 Sopot.

Wawrinka entered the match having won all 30 of his service games this week, but he successfully held serve just three times from seven tries. Nadal won 56 per cent of his return points, doing well to keep the 34-year-old from stepping into the court and exerting his powerful game. The Spaniard consistently attacked with his backhand to push Wawrinka back before using angles to open up the court and dictate play.

The second set was closer — in score and in rallies — than the 26-minute opener, as Wawrinka attempted to play more aggressively. But Nadal was untroubled, pumping his left fist after Wawrinka missed a backhand chip wide on the Spaniard’s first match point.

Nadal has won all seven sets he has played against Tsitsipas, leading their FedEx ATP Head2Head series 3-0. But this is the first time the #NextGenATP Greek has entered one of their match’s as a Top 10 player. The Spaniard has broken the three-time ATP Tour titlist’s serve 14 times in their three meetings, with Tsitsipas breaking just once. He is trying to reach his second Masters 1000 final after doing so at the Rogers Cup last year.

Did You Know?
This is the first tournament of 2019 in which we have four Top 10 semi-finalists.

Stefanos Tsitsipas wasn’t always the flashiest player in his Mutua Madrid Open quarter-final against Alexander Zverev, but Greece’s #NextGenATP star rode the waves of momentum well to reach his second ATP Masters 1000 semi-final.

The 20-year-old Tsitsipas beat Zverev for the second time in a row, eliminating the defending champion 7-5, 3-6, 6-2 in front of a lively Friday evening crowd in the Spanish capital.

The reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion will next face five-time champion Rafael Nadal, who dismissed Swiss Stan Wawrinka 6-1, 6-2. Tsitsipas trails Nadal 0-3 in their FedEx ATP Head2Head series, which includes their 2018 Barcelona Open Banc Sabadell final, also on clay.

“I’m really happy and satisfied with my performance. I think I deserved the match at the end. I was playing really well, feeling really comfortable on the court. When you feel like this, you can do miracles. So I’m really enjoying the process, really enjoying my stay here until now, and I really hope to do even better in the future,” Tsitsipas said.

For stretches, Zverev couldn’t be touched during their third FedEx ATP Head2Head meeting (Tsitsipas leads 2-1), landing first serves at will and hitting inside-out backhand winners behind the Greek. But while Tsitsipas didn’t reach Zverev’s highs, he also didn’t reach his lows.

The third-seeded German erased four break points in his first two service games, and the two looked destined for a first-set tie-break. Tsitsipas, however, broke to love in the 11^th game as his fans raised their Greek flags and shouted “Tsit-si-pas! Tsit-si-pas!”

“People were cheering my name, and they were very full of joy watching me play, and that gives me extra motivation,” Tsitsipas said. “People are enjoying it. I’m enjoying it. It feels like a really nice atmosphere… I’m really glad people support me, and that people love my game.”

The Greek broke down Zverev’s forehand, which contributed seven of his 14 unforced errors in the opening set. But Zverev didn’t stay down.

He played his best tennis in the second set, landing 90 per cent of his first serves – and ignited the crowd himself with a tweener-plus-winner combination as he held for 4-3.

Zverev yelled at the fans, prodding them to get more involved as he walked to his chair for the changeover. “Come on!” he shouted. “I can’t hear you!” He then proceeded to win the next eight points and the second set.

But the same serve that carried Zverev to the 2018 title – he didn’t get broken last year – and helped him tie up his the quarter-final against Tsitsipas ultimately let him down in the decider.

Zverev, while serving at 1-2, double faulted twice, including on break point, and Tsitsipas continued to apply pressure, winning 73 per cent of his net points (24/33) and broke in the final game.

“He’s playing very good. He’s obviously improved a lot. His serve is very, very good, I was surprised today. And the second shot, he hits it unbelievably aggressive so it was not easy. I actually thought I played really well the first two sets,” said Zverev, who had three break points at 1-1 in the third. “If I played a little more aggressive in that third set on break points, maybe I go up a break and win the match as well. But everything happens for a reason.”