Jannik Sinner says Novak Djokovic 'an inspiration to new generation' after setting up Wimbledon final with Alexander Zverev
Updated 10/07/2026 at 20:09 GMT+1
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Jannik Sinner says Novak Djokovic is "an inspiration to the new generation" after the Italian set up a Wimbledon men's singles final with Alexander Zverev. Sinner was at his imperious best on a sultry afternoon in SW19.
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Video credit: SNTV
Djokovic had himself been aiming to progress to yet another Wimbledon final, in a bid to seal a record 25th major victory.
But he was thwarted by his Italian rival, who showed no signs of struggling in the heat like he had done at last month's French Open, where he crashed out in the second round.
Speaking on court after his straight-sets 6-4 6-4 6-4 victory over the Serbian great, Sinner said: "It means a lot to me that I can play one more final here. It's the most special tournament we have, it means a lot to me.
"And of course playing against Novak, what he is still showing is a true inspiration, not only for you guys [the fans] but also for the new generation. What he's still doing is amazing, incredible."
On the key to his comfortable win that he completed in two hours and 21 minutes, Sinner added: "We always have very, very tough matches. The last one he won in semis in Australia.
"I tried to make a couple of adjustments, even though here on grass it's very difficult.
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"He had a very tough match against Felix [Auger-Aliassime] which we'll remember, I think, forever in this arena.
"I tried to stay quite aggressive, serving very well, which helped me a lot today.
"He is, from my point of view, the best returner we have in our game, so I tried to mix up, and so I'm very happy about today's performance."
Djokovic, in his post-match press conference, was candid about how effective Sinner had been.
"[Sinner has a] very unpredictable serve, great variety, great balance, great pop," Djokovic said.
"He's using his height extremely well. Also second serve very deep in the box. A lot of rotation. He can go for speed. He doesn't make many double-faults. He's just super solid.
"He backs it up with first aggressive shot. If you play a shorter return, you're, again, on your back foot. It's really, really tough to play him, particularly when he serves."
Next for Sinner is a second successive Wimbledon final, where he will defend his title against Zverev, who beat Britain's wildcard surprise package Arthur Fery in straight sets.
Zverev, having landed his first major victory at Roland-Garros last month, is in his own purple patch, and the match-up - though it has been dominated by Sinner in recent times - will be a captivating one at the All England Club on Sunday.
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