(CNN)Novak Djokovic is 1 triumph distant from a record-breaking 21st large rubric and the archetypal calendar expansive slam successful men's singles since 1969.
He needed the afloat 5 sets to bash it, but the satellite No. 1 from Serbia defeated No. 4 Alexander Zverev of Germany 4-6, 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 successful the US Open semifinal astatine Arthur Ashe Stadium connected Friday.
Djokovic, 34, is tied with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal with 20 large singles titles -- the astir successful men's tennis. He volition look Russian and satellite No. 2 Daniil Medvedev successful the last connected Sunday.
On the tribunal aft Friday's win, Djokovic said: "There's lone 1 lucifer left. All in, let's bash it. I'm going to enactment my bosom and my psyche and my assemblage and my caput into that one. I'm going to dainty the adjacent lucifer similar it is the past lucifer of my career."
The past antheral to implicit the calendar expansive slam -- winning the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and US Open successful the aforesaid twelvemonth -- was Rod Laver successful 1969. Laver tweeted a representation of himself watching Friday's semifinal, saying "Great to beryllium backmost successful New York, watching the past channel."
Six years ago, Serena Williams attempted to implicit a calendar expansive slam, which hadn't been done connected the women's circuit since Steffi Graf successful 1988. Graf besides won golden successful singles astatine the Olympics that year, making her the lone tennis subordinate -- antheral oregon pistillate -- to implicit a alleged aureate slam, winning Olympic golden successful summation to each 4 majors.
Williams went connected to beryllium shocked successful the US Open semifinals by Roberta Vinci.
In the aboriginal hours Saturday, Djokovic referenced Williams' run, saying: "I retrieve I won 2015, I won that year's US Open. I was talking to Serena. She was precise affectional astir everything that was going on. I tin subordinate to what she's been going done close now. I recognize it now. Obviously, erstwhile you're successful that situation, you tin truly comprehend what a subordinate goes through."
Djokovic said helium understands wherefore Williams wanted to debar questions astir her loss, and spoke of the unit apical players consciousness to support winning.
"At the extremity of the day, you person to spell retired connected the tribunal and deliver. You're expected to ever win. For a large fable that she is, she ever has that expectations from everyone, including herself," helium said. "It's nary antithetic with me."
In his post-match property conference, Zverev said of Djokovic: "If you look astatine the stats, if you look the axenic crippled of tennis action, he's the top of each time.
"There is simply a crushed wherefore he's won 20 expansive slams. There's a crushed wherefore he's spent the astir weeks astatine satellite No. 1... I deliberation mentally he's the champion subordinate to ever play the game. Mentally successful the astir important moments, I would alternatively play against anybody other but him."
Djokovic plays Medvedev connected Sunday. The 25-year-old defeated 12th effect Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada successful consecutive sets earlier Friday, reaching his 3rd expansive slam final. He has dropped conscionable 1 acceptable successful this year's US Open.
This volition beryllium Medvedev's 2nd US Open final, having mislaid to Nadal successful 5 sets successful 2019. He mislaid the Australian Open last to Djokovic successful consecutive sets earlier this year.
After his semifinal win, Medvedev said helium learned a batch from that lucifer against Djokovic successful Melbourne.
"He was playing antithetic than the matches helium did earlier me, and I was benignant of not acceptable for it. So present I am," Medvedev said of Djokovic's tactics.
Of the final, helium said: "It's going to beryllium much absorbing successful presumption of maneuver what I'm going to hole .. No substance the score, I'm conscionable going to crook up the heat, if I tin say, and effort to bash my best, adjacent much than what I did successful Melbourne."
At the Tokyo Olympics this summer, Djokovic -- who had already won the Australian Open, French Open and Wimbledon -- had the accidental to spell for the golden slam.
Instead, helium near without a medal aft losing to Zverev successful the semifinals. It was Zverev, a finalist astatine past year's US Open, who went connected to triumph the golden medal successful the best-of-three-sets format.
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