Men’s Olympic Tennis Semi-Final – Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev Preview & Prediction
THE FACTS
When is Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev taking place? Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev will take place on Friday 30th July, 2021 at (not before) 08:30 (UK)
Where is Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev taking place? Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev will take place at Ariake Tennis Park in Tokyo
What surface is Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev played on? Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev will be played on hard courts
Where can I get tickets for Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev? There are no tickets for Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev as Olympic Tennis will take place without spectators.
What TV channel is Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev on in the UK? Olympic coverage is shared between BBC and Eurosport so it is worth checking their schedules for Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev
Where can I stream Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev in the UK? If Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev is televised on BBC then it can be streamed live on the BBC iPlayer and the BBC Sport website & app. If Novak Djokovic vs Alexander Zverev is televised on Eurosport then subscribers can stream the match live on Eurosport Player
THE PREDICTION
World number one Novak Djokovic has a huge opportunity to win a first gold medal this weekend with his biggest threat, number two Daniil Medvedev, losing in the quarter-finals on Thursday. The 34-year-old will face the next toughest foe in this semi-final as he takes on world number five Alexander Zverev for a ninth time, leading the 24-year-old 6-2 in their head-to-head record. Djokovic has won the last four meetings against the big-serving German, who is yet to concede a set at the Olympic Games after a relatively comfortable win over Jeremy Chardy on Thursday. The Serb completely thrashed Japan’s last hope Kei Nishikori, handing the 31-year-old a bagel in the second set to make his position clear ahead of Sunday’s final.
Zverev has won two of his ATP titles with victories over Novak Djokovic at the 2017 Italian Open and 2018 ATP Finals and both of their meetings this season have seen sets go both ways at the ATP Cup and Australian Open. With respect to Karen Khachanov and Pablo Carreno Busta in the other semi-final, the German represents Djokovic’s biggest obstacle to his coveted ‘Golden Slam’ and he will know not to underestimate the kind of obliteration Zverev is sometimes capable of. Such is Djokovic’s focus and form coming into this he will probably take this semi-final in two but it is safer to opt for an outright win for the world number one on the cusp of history.
