Top seed Novak Djokovic crashed out of the Brisbane International in a straight-sets quarter-final loss to Reilly Opelka.
Djokovic, seeking his 100th ATP title, found himself neck-and-neck with the American in the opening set before Opelka cruised to a 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 victory in an hour and 40 minutes.
Opelka, 27, will now face Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard, who beat Jakub Mensik 7-5 7-6 (7-5) to reach the semi-finals.
“(Djokovic) is the greatest tennis player of all time. But it’s difficult to be in his place,” said Opelka, ranked 293rd in the world.
“The reality is we have nothing to lose against him, so you end up playing more freely and taking a lot more risks because it’s your only chance. If you play at your normal level, he wins every time .”
Opelka, who has been out for almost two years since 2022 after undergoing hip and wrist surgeries, is looking to win his fifth career title in Brisbane.
“It was hard. There were a lot of uncertainties and doubts,” Opelka added.
“I watched a lot of my friends on TV, which was fun, motivating and kept me interested in the sport. I also saw Novak become the best during that time.”
Meanwhile, 24-time Grand Slam winner Djokovic will focus on winning an 11th title at the Australian Open (January 12-26) under his new coach Andy Murray.
In Brisbane’s other semi-final, defending champion Grigor Dimitrov, who received a withdrawal after injured Jordan Thompson retired, will face Jiri Lehecka, who beat Nicolas Jarry 6-4 6-4.
Sabalenka prepares for the clash against Andreeva
World number one Aryna Sabalenka reached the semi-finals of the women’s singles by beating Marie Bouzkova 6-3 6-4.
The top seed Belarusian will now face 17-year-old Mirra Andreeva, who beat former world number two Ons Jabeur 6-4 7-6 (7-2).
The duo last seen at Roland-Garros 2024 where the Russian teenager beat Sabalenka 6-7 (5-7) 6-4 6-4 to become the youngest player since Martina Hingis in 1997 to reach a Grand Slam semi-final.
Czech Bouzkova got off to a good start in the quarter-final by breaking her serve in the first game, but Sabalenka, a three-time major winner, fought back to win the first set in 51 minutes.
She then completed the second set in 53 minutes as she aims for an 18th career title.
“They are always difficult fights against Bouzkova and I lost the last one (in Washington). I came into the match very focused and I am happy to have been able to put pressure on her and finish the match in two sets,” said the 26th-year-old said.
“(Andreeva) is a great player. We recently played an exhibition tournament in Abu Dhabi where I got to know her better. She’s also a great person and I’m really looking forward to playing against her.”
Russian Polina Kudermetova and Ukrainian Anhelina Kalinina will face off in the other women’s singles semi-final.
