Novak Djokovic is just one win away from winning the 100th ATP title of his storied career. Djokovic had to battle through a bit of a scare to overcome Cameron Norrie on Friday, advancing to the finals of the Geneva Open.
Djokovic won a tightly contested first set 6-4 before Norrie came roaring back in the second to take the set 7-6 (8-6), surviving a Djokovic match point to force a third. While it seemed as though Norrie had the momentum, Djokovic showed flashes of his formerly dominant self, running Norrie all over the court before taking the win with a dominant 6-1 final set.
Thursday saw Djokovic celebrate his 38th birthday by defeating Matteo Arnaldi in the tournament quarterfinals. The win over Arnaldi helped exorcise the ghost of a loss in the same matchup in Djokovic’s first match at April’s ATP Masters 1000 Madrid. The Madrid loss was the second consecutive tournament in which Djokovic went out in his first match.
Djokovic now advances to Saturday’s finals, where he will meet Hubert Hurkacz.
The quest for his 100th title has been a rocky one for Djokovic. He captured title 99 by winning gold in the 2024 Olympics, but the momentum did not carry forward. Since the Olympics, Djokovic had reached two finals prior to the Geneva Open while exiting in his first match of four tournaments.
Should Djokovic defeat Hurkacz, who has yet to drop a set in Geneva, he will become just the third man to win 100 titles, joining Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103).
