PREVIEW | 2023 Davis Cup Finals as Novak DJOKOVIC and Jannik SINNER set for third match in two weeks in SERBIA v ITALY crunch clash
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For the third time in two weeks, Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner are very much likely to do battle one way or another in the semi-finals of the Davis Cup Finals on Saturday afternoon.
Our preview looks back at their previous meetings and their short tournaments so far in Malaga, with Italy seeing off the Netherlands and Serbia defeating Great Britain. Now an end of year treat is on the horizon.
Most anticipated match in tennis after Turin?
All year has been dominated by Novak Djokovic v Carlos Alcaraz, but perhaps the new meeting to look out for is one with the latter's counterpart and a player seen as his new nearest rival when the Serbian finally packs up the game. Albeit given his current form, that doesn't seem likely for some time.
Jannik Sinner has been in superb title winning form and has been turning a lot of poor Head to Head records including Daniil Medvedev around winning in Beijing and Vienna. He then took that to Turin having booked his spot in his home finals.
In one of the biggest seismic shocks in tennis of the season, Sinner saw off Djokovic who had won 19 games in a row spanning since Wimbledon. A remarkable statistic given Djokovic hasn't played hardly all season.
It came back to bite Sinner though. He had the chance to dump out Djokovic if he lost to Holger Rune, but given he is a winner, he decided to try and beat the Dane which he did. This gave Djokovic a path through and in the final, he took out his revenge.
But can Sinner exact some revenge himself as a back and forth rivalry begins. Sinner himself has brought himself back superbly after being criticised also for skipping Davis Cup, he has been the anchor. After Matteo Arnaldi lost to Botic van de Zandschulp, Sinner led from the front seeing off Tallon Griekspoor 7-6, 6-1 and then won the doubles alongside Lorenzo Sonego against Wesley Koolhof and Griekspoor.
While Serbia had a rout in their match as Miomir Kecmanovic won their first tie who will likely face Arnaldi or Sonego, while Djokovic after being subjected to a late drugs test and fans from Britain heckling him thrashed Cameron Norrie 6-4, 6-4.
Given they were the top two from their nations, it means after there was no Murray v Djokovic, there will likely be Sinner v Djokovic and likely to decide the winner giving it even further high stakes.
The winner will take on Finland or Australia at time of writing who face off in the first semi-final. It is 4-1 to Djokovic in the head to head currently in that landmark clash, will Sinner cut the gap or will Djokovic extend it and prove Turin was a blip? One more match between the pair this season and it carries national pride.#
Prediction: Serbia with two singles wins
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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