Top seed and 2018 champion Novak Djokovic advanced to the Western & Southern Open final on Friday with a 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 (0) comeback victory against eighth seed Roberto Bautista Agut.
Nole fended off neck discomfort and his determined opponent to clinch a hard-fought win and improve to a perfect 22-0 W/L record on the season.
The world no.1 reached his 51st Masters 1000 championship match (34-16) after three hours of play.
After losing the opening set, Novak increased his aggression and with his high level of play took the match from Bautista Agut. The third set tie-breaker was a one-way traffic, as Novak clinched it 7-0.
It was Novak’s 12th ATP contest against the Spaniard, he now leads their H2H 9-3.
Match statistics: aces (14-2), double faults (7-4), winners (41-26), unforced errors (43-31), total points won (110-103).
Novak will meet world no.30 Milos Raonic on Saturday, looking to win his 80th career title.
The 33-year-old Serbian star owns a faultless 10-0 ATP H2H record against the big-hitting Canadian.
Should he take the title, Djokovic will equal Rafael Nadal’s record of 35 ATP Masters 1000 trophies, and he will also become the first player ever to win the Golden Masters twice.
Photo: AP
