- by Masivuye Mzimkhulu
- on 3 Sep, 2025
Djokovic holds his nerve as Fritz misses his moment
At 38, Novak Djokovic is still finding ways to turn tight nights in his favor. He beat Taylor Fritz 6-3, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4 in a tense US Open 2025 quarterfinal on Tuesday in New York, stretching his spotless head-to-head against the American to 11-0 and booking Grand Slam semifinal No. 53 of his career.
This was no routine win. Fritz came with a clear plan, stayed toe-to-toe from the baseline, and forced Djokovic to play long, physical rallies. He created 13 break points and, for long stretches in the second and third sets, looked like the more dangerous player. The gap showed up in the smallest places: Fritz converted only two of those 13 chances. Djokovic saved nine straight to start the match-up and slipped out of the second set with a late break that flipped the entire feel of the night.
Djokovic called it an “incredibly close match” on court, and it was. The second set told the story. Fritz pressed, earned looks, and had the crowd buzzing. Djokovic met every big moment with first-serve accuracy, depth on the return game after changeovers, and a couple of cold-blooded backhands down the line. When he stole the 7-5 set, Fritz had to reset from two sets down despite playing some of his best tennis against the seven-time US Open finalist.
Fritz didn’t fold. He cracked open the third set by swinging freer on the forehand, taking balls earlier, and stepping inside the baseline to finish at the net. That aggression paid off in a 6-3 set that finally rewarded his pressure. For the first time all night, he looked in control of the tempo, and Djokovic—who needed the physio’s attention earlier in the tournament—looked a touch flat between points.
The fourth set came down to margins. Djokovic found an early break with a deep return game that pinned Fritz into backhand corners. From there it was about management. He took pace off at times to stretch rallies, then surprised with sudden acceleration on the backhand up the line. Fritz kept swinging and earned one last push at 4-5, but Djokovic closed with a calm service game and a tidy hold to finish in four.
Both men wore black kits and mirrored each other with semi-Western forehands and compact two-handed backhands. That meant baseline chess for most of the night, with few free points. When Djokovic got heat from the crowd during a couple of tense exchanges, he stayed within himself, even if his celebration at the end was more relief than release. “I wear my heart on my sleeve,” he said, before turning the page to the semifinal.
The result adds another line to a 2025 season that keeps trending up for Djokovic. He has now reached the semifinals at all four majors this year, the seventh season of his career with that level of consistency. He is two wins from a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title and a fifth trophy in New York, where his resilience in the biggest moments continues to hold.
For Fritz, the loss stings because the performance was there. He made last year’s US Open final and has built a tougher, more complete game since then—more patience in longer exchanges, more bite on the forehand when he gets a look, and better choices on approach balls. On this night, he just didn’t land the conversion punches. Against Djokovic, that’s usually the difference between a famous win and a tough exit.
Alcaraz next: styles, stakes, and the fine print
So it’s Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz on Friday, their first meeting at the US Open and the latest chapter in a rivalry that’s already defining this era. Djokovic leads the head-to-head 5-3 and has taken the last two meetings. Alcaraz arrives with his blend of explosive first-step movement, elastic defense, and sudden attack—plus the memory of lifting the trophy here in 2022, which still matters under the lights in Queens.
This match-up is a contrast in rhythms. Alcaraz loves to flip court position with one swing or one sprint, especially with the drop shot to pull opponents forward and the quick counter up the line. Djokovic prefers control first: strangle you with depth, read your patterns, then open the court with angles only when it’s on his terms. When they play, the rallies can look slow until they turn fast. That’s where the tension lives.
There’s also freshness versus experience. Alcaraz plays with a fearlessness that can unlock elite defenses. Djokovic reads that fearlessness and turns it into traps—taking away the inside-out forehand, throwing in low, skidding slices, or redirecting to backhands when he needs a reset. The serve-return battle will set the tone from the start.
What could decide Friday’s semifinal?
- Second-serve points: If Djokovic punishes Alcaraz’s second serve early, he can dictate neutral rallies. If Alcaraz protects it, he keeps his playbook open.
- Transition discipline: Alcaraz thrives when he can turn defense into offense in two shots. Djokovic will try to make him play three or four more balls before pulling the trigger.
- Drop-shot duels: Expect Alcaraz to test Djokovic’s court position. If Djokovic reads it, he can flip those points with deep counters and force Carlos to abandon the play.
- Physical length: If this goes past three hours, the older legs-versus-young legs narrative will surface. Djokovic’s energy management—those well-timed slower games—could matter late.
- Crowd energy: This is New York. Momentum is loud here. Handling the noise in the adrenaline points (30-all, deuce) often swings sets.
Djokovic’s chase now is twofold: the immediate one—get past Alcaraz—and the historical one that floats over every match he plays. Twenty-five majors is a big number, and a fifth crown in New York would be a powerful way to stamp a season that started with questions about how much he had left. He keeps answering them with results.
Alcaraz will bring speed, ambition, and the sense that a match can turn on one daring shot. Djokovic will bring memory, feel, and the ability to make a best-of-five feel like a maze. Their first US Open meeting carries the weight of a final, even if it’s a semifinal on paper. On Friday, that weight shifts to whoever blinks first in the big moments.
For now, Djokovic walks off with another four-set win and enough fuel to prepare. Fritz walks away knowing he was right there, except on the only points that counted. That’s the cruelty of these nights at Flushing Meadows, where the scoreboard keeps track of just a few moments and forgets the rest.