Djokovic stops Shapovalov, sets up Medvedev semifinal

• Raducanu Doubtful For Australia Open
Novak Djokovic defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-3 6-4 to reach the Adelaide International semifinals, where he will face Daniil Medvedev.

Djokovic, 35, will meet Medvedev after the Russian came through his last eight match with Karen Khachanov 6-3 6-3.

The pair last met in November with Djokovic victorious in the final of the Nitto ATP Finals event.

Adelaide is Djokovic’s first tournament in Australia since he was deported in 2022 because of his vaccine status.

So far, his progress in the tournament has been serene and he has yet to drop a set across three matches. The 23-year-old Canadian Shapovalov is the latest to be overcome as Djokovic prepares for the Australian Open, which starts on January 16.

The Serb will target a 10th title – and record-equalling 22nd overall Grand Slam success – at the opening Grand Slam of the year after the Australian government overturned the his visa ban.

Meanwhile, British number one, Emma Raducanu, is heading to Melbourne, but her prospects of playing in the Australian Open remain unclear.

Raducanu, 20, retired from her second round match at the ASB Classic in Auckland on Thursday after slipping and rolling her left ankle.

The full extent of the problem is yet to be diagnosed, but the hope is that it is only a minor strain.

Raducanu, the 2021 US Open champion, had not entered any tournaments next week.

She began 2023 with victory over teenager Linda Fruhvirtova in her opening match in New Zealand in preparation for the season’s first major.

But the world number 78 left the court in tears after rolling her ankle during the second set against Slovakia’s Viktoria Kuzmova, with the score 6-0 5-7. She later criticised the “slippery” courts.

Raducanu’s 2022 season was plagued by injury as she retired from five matches, but in December she had said she was feeling “good”.

She reached the second round at the 2022 Australian Open on her debut at the tournament, losing in three sets to Danka Kovinic.
Culled from BBCSports