Djokovic falls to Opelka, Sabalenka sets up Brisbane semis clash with Andreeva

Former world number one Novak Djokovic’s Australian Open preparations suffered a blow Friday as he was bundled out of the Brisbane International by towering American Reilly Opelka.

The 2.11 metre (six feet 11 inches) Opelka served magnificently and returned just as well to stun the 24-time Grand Slam winner 7-6 (8/6), 6-3.

Djokovic had gone into the tournament insisting that at 37 he still had the game to trouble the younger players.

But Opelka, 27, a former world number 17 who was out of the game for almost two years from 2022-24 following hip and wrist surgeries, dominated the Serb and wrapped up a comfortable win in an hour and 40 minutes.

Opelka came back to the sport in July last year but showed his serve has lost none of its potency in his time away.

He served 16 aces and only faced one break point throughout the match.

“He’s the greatest player ever,” Opelka said of Djokovic.

“The reality is we have nothing to lose coming in against him. You end up playing more freely and you take a lot more risks because it’s your only chance of beating him.

“It’s tough for him, because you get guys like me who are going to roll the dice, and on a day like this things go my way, and that’s how it worked out.”

Opelka now faces another huge server in the semi-finals, rising French star Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who made it 75 aces in three matches as he beat Czech player Jakub Mensik, 7-5, 7-6 (7/5).

The second semi-final will see defending champion and second seed Grigor Dimitrov up against another Czech, Jiri Lehecka.

In the women’s quarter-finals, world number one Aryna Sabalenka overpowered Marie Bouzkova in straight sets.

Sabalenka, who has won the last two titles at the Grand Slam in Melbourne, beat the Czech player 6-3, 6-4 in a tough match lasting 1hr 45mins.

She now plays Russian teenager Mirra Andreeva, who defeated Tunisia’s Ons Jabeur 6-4, 7-6 (7/2).

The 17-year-old Andreeva showcased her rich potential by defeating former world number two Jabeur in a high-quality encounter.

Jabeur was runner-up at Wimbledon in 2022 and 2023 but has been out of action since August with a shoulder injury.

Andreeva was able to deal with the tricky shotmaking of Jabeur, breaking her once in the first set and then recovering from two breaks of her own serve in the second set to force a tiebreak.

She raced through the tiebreak to wrap up the match in 90 minutes.

The second women’s semi-final will be between Russian qualifier Polina Kudermetova and Ukraine’s Anhelina Kalinina. The Australian Open starts on January 12.

Czech Republic hammer Italy: Karolina Muchova dismantled Jasmine Paolini in straight sets to help the Czech Republic beat Italy on Friday and set up a United Cup semi-final against the United States.

Kazakhstan play last year’s runners-up Poland, led by women’s world number two Iga Swiatek, in Saturday’s other semi-final in Sydney.

Muchova, who suffered a career-threatening wrist injury and missed 10 months of tennis before returning last summer, made her case to be taken seriously at the upcoming Australian Open.

The 28-year-old, ranked 22 in the world to Paolini’s four, defeated the Italian 6-2, 6-2 to give the Czechs one foot in the last four.

A gripping fourth game of the second set lasted more than 10 minutes and was pivotal as Muchova finally held serve, before breaking her opponent to love for 4-1.

Muchova now boasts a 5-0 record over Paolini.

Tomas Machac was then equally ruthless in the men’s singles rubber with a 6-1, 6-2 romp in 54 minutes over Flavio Cobolli.

It gave the Czechs an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the quarter-final.

Machac, who is 25th in the world, joked he “was playing like Novak (Djokovic)”.

The Czechs will face a United States team led by Coco Gauff and Taylor Fritz for a place in Sunday’s final.

Agencies