So that’s today, but what of tomorrow? Well, action starts with Madison Keys v Elina Svitolina, then moves through Emma Navarro v Iga Swiatek and Ben Shelton v Lorenzo Sonego, before you get to join us for live, game-by-game coverage of Jannik Sinner v Alex de Minaur.See you then, but in the meantime, thanks for your company and go in peace.So let’s quickly round up today’s action:Paula Badosa beat Coco Gauff to reach her first grand slam semiAlexander Zverev beat Tommy Paul in four setsAryna Sabalenka beat Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, justNovak Djokovic beat Carlos Alcaraz, as you may have heardPhew, that was some ridiculous behaviour.It’s amazing that Djokovic is still shocking and confounding us given 24 major titles, one Olympic gold, and all the other things he’s done to upend our conception of the possible.But that performance there was something else, the best he’s played in a slam in two years and coming when we were wondering if he even had that kind of performance left in him.

I do think Alcaraz can play a fair bit better than that, but the principal reason he didn’t was the genius on the other side of the net.Djokovic chuckles a little and, asked how he won, says “With my two arms and two legs, I guess … well one and half legs.”He then communicates his admiration and respect for Alcaraz and his achievements; “What a terrific guy he is and even better competitor,” explaining that he’s going to be around plenty more.Continuing, Djokovic says he wishes this match was the final, one of the most epic matches he’s played on this court or any other; he doesn’t know if Zverev is still awake at this hour.Asked about his injury, he says seeing as he’s still in the tournament he doesn’t want to say too much, but if he’d lost the second set he might’ve retired.

But once the second dose of medication kicked in, he improved and saw that Alcaraz was hesitant from the back so he took his chances and started to feel and move better.Reminded that two years ago, he injured himself mind-tournament, went more aggressive and won the title, he stops answering to wonder how his kids are still awake at 1am, before explaining that given the intensity Alcaraz brings, you have to come out and be at your best.And the same applies to the match against Zverev, but that’s not till Friday, so there’s plenty of recovery time.And he’ll need it, given how well Zverev is playing, but says they’ve an agreement that the Germand won’t win any slams until he retires.So Djokovic moves on and will face Alexander Zverev in the last four; Alcaraz departs to plenty of well deserved applause.

But he was second-best tonight, undone by the precision and desire of the greatest tenniser of all time.To play like that at any point in human history is one thing, but to play like that at the age of 37 is an act of such unmitigated cruelty and profound love that it’s hard to know what to do with all the feelings.But here comes the man of the aeon to explain himself…Bow down! Djokovic dredges forehands from the depths of the earth’s core and Alcaraz cannot cope! A fantastic performance from a wondrous athlete, and we are privileged to be living in his time.How can this man still amaze us?…lots of ball-bounces…Djokovic will want first serves here – stick with me for further insights – and though he doesn’t find one first up, Alcaraz nets on the return; 15-0.But a backhand swiped wide means 15-all … only for Djokovic to coax a wrong-footing forehand into a corner Alcaraz has just vacated after playing an apparently terrific backhand; 30-15.

Backhands from Alcaraz then make 30-all, but sent wide with one from Djokovic, he can’t control his response, and at 40-30, here comes the first match point…Alcaraz makes 30-15, then an ace out wide raises game point, and a return into the net seals the hold.At 4-6 6-4 6-3 5-4, Djokovic will shortly serve for the match…Massive game coming up, Alcaraz swiping a backhand winner down the line for 0-15; pressure! A fine return then allows him to back away and whip a forehand winner … but a Djokovic backhand halves the deficit at 15-30.Every point is an occasion now, every shot even, and another frankly disguising rally, Alcaraz dictating, ends when Djokovic errs on shot 22, and here come two break-back points! The younger man now looks the stronger man, but looking to run around his backhand he frames his forehand, and can do nothing about a serve out wide then cleanup volley to the opposite corner.That brings deuce, Djokovic making advantage when Alcaraz goes long, and though he slips, he’s straight back up.From there, he closes out a hold that goes a long way to securing the match – that’s four straight points from 15-40 – and at 5-3 in the fourth, he’s a game away.

A Djokovic net-cord sits up but Alcaraz can’t quote finish the rally and another epic unfolds, both men hitting and hollering from the depths of their mortal soul – the level is so high, the commitment so total, that it’s moving to watch – before the Serb goes long, the crowd go wild, and Alcaraz again laughs at the ridiculousness of their combined brilliance.This is so, so good, and it’s the younger man cupping ear at crowd when he secures his hold, punching a volley and gesticulating at his corner.Could that break point saved have switched momentum? Djokovic leads 2-1 4-3.“I love watching the evolution of tennis goats in their mid 30s as the legs slow down,” writes Victor K.” How many bonus slams did being coached first by Annacone and latterly Ljubicic buy Federer? And how many additional easy points on the first serve has Goran bought Djokovic the last six years?”The sneaky way the best returner ever has become one of the best servers ever, in his 30s, is a frankly obscene development.

I don’t know how much of that is down to Ivanisevic, but the rotating cast of experts makes a lot of sense when you’ve seen everything,Anyhow, another game in which Alcaraz leads, this time 40-15, winds up at deuce, the Spaniard nets a forehand, and Djokovic has a point that feels like a match point at 2-1 4-2 advantage…Alcaraz hasn’t been able to victimise Djokovic’s second serve, doing too little with one that sits up and finding himself down 30-0; between points we learn that in this set and the last, the Serb has disbursed just five unforced errors,But another brings us to 30-all … so a service-winner, curling away out wide, raises game point and provokes another hideously exhausting rally, Djokovic reading and reaching the drop aiming to finish it but unable to glide a riposte over the face of the net,So to deuce we go and down advantage – Djokovic having found a big first serve, of course he did – Alcaraz imposes backhands cross, before dematerialising a forehand winner line and celebrating with the crowd in a bid to get them and him going,This is a fantastic contest now, and again Djokovic can’t see out the advantage his first serve garners, a dead net-cord restoring deuce.

From there, though, Djokovic closes out, and at 4-6 6-4 6-3 4-2, he’s two games away.I am in awe of what we’re watching, mates; we’ve never seen anything remotely like it, nor will we again.Since Djokovic hit a seam at the start of set two, Alcaraz hasn’t managed one of his own; he’s still, of course, playing brilliant points here and there, but there’s not been a point at which we could say he was on top.Still, he quickly serves out a love game, but the way Djokovic moves away from the ace that seals it, I’m reminded that he sometimes tanks when a break up to deny his opponent the kind of rhythm that might facilitate a break.Djokovic leads 3-2 and by two sets to one.

Down 15-0, Alcaraz lands a good return then plants a forehand winner down and just inside the line, and down 15-30, a barrage of backhands level the game a second time.In the context, 30-all represents a chance, and a double means a break-back point, a terrifying long rally unfolding before Djokovic somehow finds the juice to turn it up, an inside-out forehand too much to return.So he noises up the crowd then goes again at deuce, Alcaraz doing well in the rally before overhitting a forehand when set.He just can’t cope with the consistency, slipping but also made to slip on advantage, hitting a fine backhand to the corner, but coming in behind it, a squash-shot floated down the line asks him to turn quicker than he’s able, and Djokovic secures another hold! He leads 2-1 3-1 and Alcaraz is running out of road!At 30-0, Djokovic finds an inside-out return to keep us interested and Alcaraz on edge; an ace follows, then a drop does just enough, the riposte flipped long, and the younger man wins his first game in five.Djokovic leads 2-1 2-1.

I can barely believe what I’m seeing here, a bizarre thing to say given we’re watching a man who has trained us, over decades, to expect anything.And he’s under a bit of pressure at 4-30, Alcaraz just about forcing a backhand down the line and on to its outermost fibre, but a service-winner out wide follows, Djokovic leads 2-1 2-0, and this is near-perfection, not in terms of play, as there are always errors, but in terms of execution.While I’m trying to sum up the third set, Djokovic sets about the fourth, making 15-40, and though Alcaraz saves one break point he can’t avert the next! This is mind-boggling stuff from the greatest of all time; he’s simply irrepressible out there and Alcaraz, who may have an injury issue himself, indicates to his team that he doesn’t know quite what to do.Djokovic leads 2-1 1-0, with a break!Oh man, this is great expletive stuff; I could watch this until I die and the way these are playing, you never know.Alcaraz makes o-15, then ups the pace on the forehand before laying a drop that’s far too good.

Djokovic, though, quickly levels the game at 30-all, then Alcaraz ends another sumptuously sapping rally by unloading a forehand into the top of the net; set-point Djokovic! AND OH MY COMPLETE AND UTTER DAYS! Another insane rally unfolds, Alcaraz in control, but he can’t quite finish it,Djokovic retrieving a lob that looks like a finisher then alcaraz eschewing an overhead to hit a swing-volley, picking hjs man out, and the backhand cross is so good that when younger man nets his riposte to lose the set, he returns to his chair laughing, Djokovic again cupping ear at crowd This is simply incredible behaviour even by the stratospheric standard, and Djokovic leads 4-6 6-4 6-3!Djokovic wins out at the net for 0-15, then another brilliant return, on the stretch, sends a really good serve deep and Alcaraz shanks a forehand riposte wide before overhitting a backhand,In no time at all, it’s 0-40, and goodness gracious me! Another horrible rally, 22 shots, then Djokovic conjures an inside-out forehand into the corner and at 5-3, he breaks to love and will now serve for a 2-1 lead! But not before he’s cupped ears at the crowd, all of whom, along with the rest of the world, are presumably against him, even those shouting his name,It just isn’t fair, but what a ridiculous man this man is,Alcaraz flings himself into a return and makes 0-15 when Djokovic can’t respond, then a forehand is enough for 0-30,Big moments coming up again, and goodness me, a double means three break-back points, the umpire reminding people not to talk between serves.

Naturally, Djokovic plays a perfect point at 0-40, a serve out wide facilitating Alcaraz extracts from himself yet greater effort, turning up the power o a forehand down the line and thrashing away until his opponent can’t take any more.We’re back on serve at 4-4 in set three, and this match is maturing into a classic.It’s true that neither player is at his best, but the intensity of the contest is special.Up 15-0, Alcaraz checks a drive-volley, perhaps put-off by Djokovic’s movement, and does too much.Then, at 40-15, Djokovic stretches to return, facilitating a backhand down the line that’s too good, and from there he makes deuce; again he’s the better, happier player, and a double hands him advantage.

These are big moments, and yet another fine return from Djokovic removes the server’s advantage, then cleaner ball-striking yields the unforced error, Alcaraz netting a backhand, and there’s the break! Djokovic leads 4-6 6-4 4-2!Djokovic holds to 15 and he leads 3-2 in set three; I’ve not a clue how he’s able to deliver this level of performance at 37, nor find it in himself to get as fit as he needs to be.He remains the better player, but can he make it count?Hauled in, Djokovic outwits Alcaraz at the net for 0-15, then a backhand swiped wide and it’s 0-30.“Nole! Nole! Nole!” chant the crowd and the man himself knows this could be his moment … or not, the younger man quickly levelling the game with a drop-pass combo move.But when a serve sits up, a forehand winner down the line gives Djokovic 30-40 … only for Alcaraz to find the delivery and cleanup he needs to make deuce.Then, handed a nasty backhand down the line, he digs out a fine forehand response that forces the error, closing out with a winner down the line for 2-2 in the third.

This is a brutal, absorbing, inspiring contest … and it’s nowhere near finished!A second-serve ace gives Djokovic 15-0, but Alcaraz then makes room to hammer a forehand winner down the line.It’s a proper slug-fest now and it’s the older man in the ascendancy, the elasticated steel wire he has in lieu of muscles serving him well.He holds to 15 and leads 4-6 6-4 2-1, but can he maintain his level – technically and physically – as the set develops?I’d expect Djokovic to put the pressure on here, looking to finish rather than probe.But though an ace gives Alcaraz 30-0, good defence then persuades him to overhit and a netted forehand takes us to 30-all; he’s dipping a little here, and his opponent will sense that, stretching to force back a forehand, then inventing a ludicrous backhand angle from the middle of the baseline to break the sideline with a winner.On break point, though, Alcaraz finds the forehands he needs … only to net another when matched by Djokovic from the back.

This time, though, he can’t return a slower first serve, a sonic-boom forehand makes advantage, and the Serb, well in the next point, nets to hand over the hold.We’re 1-1 1-1, and this is absolutely compelling stuff.The difference in that second set, I think, was Djokovic’s ability to hit the baseline or close to it with his returns.And he quickly makes 40-15 serving first in the third, but when a backhand floats wide, there’s a little bit of pressure … all the more so when he opts not to pursue a pretty high drop.From there, though, Djokovic quickly closes out, a cunning serve onto the back of the line securing the game.

He leads 4-6 6-4 1-0.Now then: Alcaraz goes long, then tries a higher ball, but Djokovic waits for it, rides it, and punishes a leaping forehand winner down the line for 0-30! Naturally a tremendous return follows right on to the line, and Alcaraz can’t backpeddle fast enough to reset; three set points coming up! And Djokovic only needs one, making room absorbing a body-serve to smoke a backhand winner down the line and level the match at 4-6 6-4! Djokovic is an absolute djoke, one of the greatest competitors we’ve ever seen in any sport.Enjoy him while you still can, people.Djokovic comes in but can’t close off the net and another hooked forehand leaves him helpless.So up 0-15, Alcaraz comes in off a second-serve return – “crush and rush,” says Tim Henman in co-comms – but then nets his volley.

Then, at 15-all, Alcaraz is forced into a defensive lob, so Djokovic soars to flick backhand overhead winner that’s all wrist; what an absolute master he is, just obscene in every aspect of the game.And from there, he closes out – just, Alcaraz missing by fractions with a backhand down the line.He’ll now serve to stay in the second set at 6-4 4-5.