Can Aslan Karatsev dream run crush Novak Djokovic's title hopes

Can Aslan Karatsev dream run crush Novak Djokovic’s title hopes?

Aslan Karatsev is ranked beyond the top 100 but confronts veteran champion Novak Djokovic in Thursday’s semi-final.

World No. 1 Novak Djokovic is tiptoeing closer to the 2021 Australian Open title defence after defeating Alexander Zverev in his quarter-final clash on Tuesday. The Serb came from being down to beat his 6th-seed opponent 6-7 (6) 6-2 6-4 7-6 (6) and setting the stage for a semi-final clash with Aslan Karatsev.

Djokovic is the obvious choice to conquer the challenge presented by the Russian qualifier, in spite of being bothered by a problematic muscle injury since Friday’s 3rd round win over Taylor Fritz.

Karatsev, seeded at a number as low as 114 by the ATP, has been the shock package of the tournament after thundering into the last four against all odds.

The 27-year-old has lost just 3 sets since the opening round, with one of those coming in his quarter-final victory over a wounded Grigor Dimitrov on Monday morning.

It seems as if Karatsev’s outstanding run could be stopped by Djokovic on Thursday, but the feisty underdog has already made a daring claim ahead of their semi-final showdown.

When asked on the likelihood of facing a big-name opponent after beating Felix Auger Aliassime on Friday, Karatsev replied: “I’m ready for everybody.”

If the Russian can collect an unbelievable victory against 17-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic, it would symbolize a massive upset and possibly spark a wild rise up in the career for Karatsev.

He added that he was delighted at how the contest was progressing for him, with the 2021 Australian Open in Melbourne being his maiden appearance at a major tournament.

Fellow semi-finalist Djokovic cut a exasperated figure during his victory over Zverev on Tuesday, shattering his racquet into the ground after failing to take a break point in the 5th game of the 3rd set.

The festooned champion kept his cool to collect a deserved victory, but stressed after the match that he was compelled to dig deep in order to progress to the semi finals.

Karatsev may be wishing that Djokovic’s injury woes will stick around until after Thursday’s match is done and dusted with, but the latter has indicated that he could be on the verge of a return to his best after the duel against Zverev.

Djokovic can go into the semi finals with the confidence of realizing that he has never lost in the Australian Open after making it to the semi-finals.