Novak Djokovic reached his first ATP semi-final in February 2006 in Zagreb, falling to Ivan Ljubicic in three tight sets. Nearly two decades later, the 38-year-old is still capable of reaching the latter stages on the highest level.
Novak defeated two rivals at this week's ATP 250 event in Athens, having advanced to his eighth ATP semi-final of the season. Thus, the legend now stands on 199 ATP semi-finals, moving one away from another incredible milestone.
Jimmy Connors and Roger Federer are the only players with 200 ATP semi-finals in the Open era, with Djokovic looking good to join them at the end of 2025 or the beginning of the new season.
Federer stands on 211, and the Serb will have a chance to pass him if he remains this consistency in 2026 and 2027. Novak has stopped the clock this season after reaching six notable semi-finals.
The Belgrade native made an incredible run at Majors, reaching all four semi-finals and writing history books. Alongside, he also competed in the last four at the Miami Masters and in Shanghai.
Djokovic suffered a couple of early losses, and without them, he could have already been on 200. However, the milestone will come sooner rather than later. Novak skipped the Paris Masters and prepared for the ATP 250 event in Athens.
The veteran defeated Alejandro Tabilo 7-6, 6-1 in the first round, besting the Chilean for the first time in a career after two losses on clay. Djokovic prevailed in the opener after over an hour and secured a double break in the second set to advance.
Novak chased his 199th ATP semi-final against Nuno Borges and delivered a hard-fought 7-6, 6-4 victory. As in the first match, the Serb had to dig deep in the opening set. He played a flawless tie break to gain the advantage.
Novak secured a single break in the second set and served well to book a place in the last four, remaining on the course toward his 101st ATP title.
