Djokovic trumps Berdych!

Novak Djokovic showcased his full catalogue of acrobatic skills and on-court nous as he broke down the defences of Czech Tomas Berdych to reach his 13th successive Grand Slam semifinal with a 7-6(5), 6-4, 6-3 win at Wimbledon on Wednesday.

The Serbian world number one performed the splits and pulled off lunging volleys as Berdych tried to throw him off balance by bombarding the 2011 champion’s half of the court with an onslaught of winners. However, Djokovic kept his wits about him even when he trailed by two breaks and was 3-0 down in the second set. Berdych surrendered the set when he slapped an easy forehand into the net and from then there was only one winner.

Djokovic sealed the win when the Czech seventh seed smacked a forehand into the net and he will meet former US Open champion Juan Martin Del Potro for a place in Sunday’s final. Juan Martin del Potro played through the pain barrier to reach his first Wimbledon semifinal as the former US Open champion defeated Spanish fourth seed David Ferrer 6-2, 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) on Wednesday.

Argentine eighth seed Del Potro emerged unscathed despite a nasty fall in the first game of the quarterfinal that required several minutes’ treatment and briefly appeared to leave him in tears. The 24-year-old was clearly struggling to move at times, but he gritted his teeth through two hours and 16 minutes of gruelling action, unloading 42 winners and 12 aces to finally subdue the battling Spaniard.  Del Potro’s reward for his heroic efforts is a daunting clash against world number one Novak Djokovic on Friday for a place in Sunday’s final.

It will be del Potro’s first Grand Slam semifinal appearance since his breakthrough triumph at the US Open four years ago. Del Potro is just the second Argentine man to feature in the Wimbledon semifinals, following in the footsteps of David Nalbandian in 2002.

Asked how close he was to pulling out, he said: “Really close because I felt a lot of pain in the beginning of the match. It was exactly the same like I did before. It’s really, really painful. I twisted my knee once again but the doctor gave me some magic pills so I could finish the match and I’m so glad to go through. Polland’s Jerzy Janowicz defeated fellow mate Kukasz Kobot 7-5, 6-4, 6-4 to advance in the semifinals of the tournament. The Pole shedded a tear after his win.