Novak Djokovic on Thursday booked his spot within the Geneva semifinals, placing the world primary inside two matches of his first title of 2024, days earlier than his French Open title defence begins.
Djokovic noticed off a first-set problem from Tallon Griekspoor to win 7-5, 6-1 in 77 minutes on the Parc des Eaux-Vives.
Griekspoor, the Dutch world quantity 27, was the sixth seed on the 28-man Geneva match, which serves as a remaining warm-up earlier than subsequent week’s second Grand Slam of the season on the Paris clay.
He had three set factors towards Djokovic within the first set.
ALSO READ | French Open 2024, males’s singles draw: Nadal to face Zverev in first spherical
“It was an amazing win. I assumed the primary set may have gone his method simply as a result of I believe he was a greater participant for many of the first set,” Djokovic mentioned afterwards.
“We may have been having a totally completely different route of the match if he transformed these set factors. I used to be fortunate to seek out some actually good serves, and from that second onwards I actually, actually performed some good, stable tennis.”
It was a bridge too far for Griekspoor, who earlier on Thursday completed off his second-round match with Denis Shapovalov, beating the Canadian 6-7 (7/9), 7-6 (7/4), 6-3.
The match was known as off for the evening within the second set on Wednesday resulting from rain.
Djokovic will face Tomas Machac of the Czech Republic in Friday’s semifinals.
The pair has solely met as soon as earlier than, with Djokovic successful the competition in Dubai final 12 months.
Machac, the world quantity 44, will probably be showing in his first semifinal on the ATP tour.
He noticed off 19-year-old Alex Michelsen of america 6-3, 7-6 (7/2) of their quarterfinal on the Geneva clay.
Michelsen knocked out his third-seeded compatriot Taylor Fritz within the second spherical.
In Thursday’s different quarterfinals, second seed Casper Ruud, who gained the Geneva title in 2021 and 2022, was to face Argentinian fifth seed Sebastian Baez.
Alexandr Shevchenko faces Flavio Cobolli, who knocked out US fourth seed Ben Shelton.