Janko Tipsarevic upsets Novak Djokovic to reach the last four – Mutua Madrid Open 2012
World number eight, Janko Tipsarevic, ousted the number one player in the world, Novak Djokovic, to book a spot in the semi-finals of the Mutua Madrid Open. He stayed focused in the first round tie-breaker and played extremely
well in the second set to win 7-6(2), 6-3.
Serb number one survived only an hour and 43 minutes at the controversial blue clay court surface on Friday. It was just the second win for the 27-year-old Tipsarevic against his compatriot who has defeated him on five different
occurrences. Last time, he registered an upset in the round rubbers match of the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals in London, last year.
The opening set witnessed no breakthroughs at all. Tipsarevic was tested rigorously in the fourth game but he was able to save four breakpoints to keep the scores together at 2-2. Apart from that, there was no pressure at all on
both players during their respective serve games.
A tie-breaker round was enforced to decide the opening set and surprisingly the seventh seed Serb proved to be a tougher competitor. Tipsarevic took the set lead and hinted another major upset in the making after the departure
of the defending champion and world number two, Rafael Nadal, on Thursday.
The 24-year-old number one Serb was in dismal condition; trailing one set down and not been able to have strong footing on the slippery surface of the blue clay court. The seventh seed took advantage of that and broke serve to
15-40 in the sixth game that increased his odds of winning the match. Djokovic was unable to reply back, unlike him, and couldn’t convert an opportunity in the final game that confirmed the triumph for the inferior ranked Serb.
On winning the match, Tipsarevic said, “I've never won a Masters Series event. It would be something new. Beating the world number one should give me enough confidence to think that I can, especially a defending champion from last
year."
Janko Tipsarevic will lock horns against the third seed Swiss, Roger Federer, in the clash for a spot in the title match. It will be an enthralling battle.
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