Picture Credit: Twitter
Current world number one Novak Djokovic stormed into the final of the Italian Open by defeating Norway's Casper Ruud in straight sets. Djokovic claimed the 1000th win in his career to become only the fifth person in the open era to achieve the feat. Djokovic will face Stefanos Tsitsipas in the summit clash, who beat his opponent Alexander Zverev in a three-set battle.
The Serbian will play the final contest in Rome for the fourth straight time and 12th overall. The upcoming final clash will be a repeat of last year's French Open which Djokovic won after fighting back from two sets down. Notably, Djokovic delivered a dominating performance in the semi-final game as he won straight sets to advance into the summit clash.
Check out Djokovic's winning moment here:
Speaking after the match, Djokovic acknowledged his opponent by saying that Alexander is in great form and expecting a 'big battle.' "Again, another final against him in one of the biggest tournaments we have in the world," Djokovic said. The 34-year-old is only the fifth man in the Open Era to reach the 1,000 wins milestone after Jimmy Connors (1,274 wins), Roger Federer (1,251 wins), Ivan Lendl (1,068 wins) and Rafael Nadal (1,051 wins).
Top-seeded further added that he had watched legends like Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal celebrating those milestones in the last couple of years and was looking forward to getting to that number himself. "It's been a long time, ever since I played my first match, ever since I won my first match on tour. Hopefully, I can keep going," he added.
While many legends of the game took to social media to congratulate the Serbian for achieving such a milestone, Djokovic's wife too expressed her delight on Twitter. She wrote, "Idemo" (meaning "Let's go" in English), a phrase that has become increasingly popular among the World No. 1's fan base, to praise him for his landmark achievement.