ROME — Holger Rune recorded his second victory over Novak Djokovic in little more than six months, beating the 22-time Grand Slam champion 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 Wednesday to reach the Italian Open semifinals.
The 20-year-old Rune, who also defeated Djokovic in the Paris Masters final in November, gave the Serb fits with his rapid court coverage. The Danish player made his opponent hit extra balls on points that Djokovic thought he had already finished off.
The 35-year-old Djokovic didn’t appear at his best physically early on and called for a trainer after holding for a 2-1 lead in the second set. It wasn’t immediately clear what the issue was.
Djokovic recently returned after three weeks off because of a lingering issue with his surgically repaired right elbow. He’s preparing for the French Open, which starts in 11 days.
Rune, meanwhile, is boosting his credentials as a Grand Slam contender after a solid season on clay that included a runner-up finish in the Monte Carlo Masters, a title in Munich, and now a semifinal spot in Rome in his first main draw appearance.
Djokovic stormed out to a 5-2 lead in the second but Rune rallied back, winning a 34-shot rally with a sublime backhand drop-shot winner to set up a key break.
Rune also called for a trainer late in the second set to have his right leg treated, shortly before the match was suspended because of rain with Rune serving to stay in the set at 4-5, 0-30.
After a suspension of more than an hour, Djokovic won two straight points to break Rune’s serve and take the second set.
Rune then broke Djokovic’s serve twice early in the third.
Djokovic has won the Italian Open six times, including last year, and failed to reach the final only once in eight previous editions – when he was beaten by Rafael Nadal in the semifinals in 2018.
Nadal, who holds the record of 10 titles in Rome, is not playing as he remains hampered by a nagging hip injury, leaving his status for Roland Garros in question.
With Djokovic out of the draw, an 18-year streak of either him or Nadal playing in the Rome final ends.
Djokovic will also lose the No. 1 ranking to Carlos Alcaraz, another 20-year-old player, next week — even though Alcaraz was beaten by 135th-ranked Hungarian qualifier Fabian Marozsan in the third round on Monday.
Rune’s semifinal opponent will be either Casper Ruud or Francisco Cerundolo, who were scheduled to play later.
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