Two days after the death of his grandfather, the top-ranked Djokovic pointed to the sky for several moments after his hard-fought win. He will play either seven-time defending champion Rafael Nadal of Spain or Frenchman Gilles Simon in Sunday’s final.
“Under the circumstances I didn’t know if I could reach the final this week,” Djokovic said. “I’ll always give my best and I’m always believing I can win every match I play.”
Djokovic lost to Nadal in the 2009 final. He looked set to fall one round earlier this year as Berdych punished the Serb in the first set with some powerful forehands.
“Conditions were really tough, the wind was blowing very hard, changing direction all the time,” Djokovic said. “(We were) making double faults. I think it helped me more because he tosses the ball quite high on his serve.”
Djokovic closed out the match on his serve and clenched both fists before shouting, “Come on!“
Berdych had sent Murray scampering to all parts of the court in Friday’s quarterfinal, and Djokovic felt the full weight of the Berdych’s forehand in the first set as the Czech reeled off four consecutive games to fight back from 4-2 down.
Frustration was getting the better of Djokovic and he lost his temper in the sixth game, shouting to himself after failing to retrieve one shot from the back of the court. Even though he broke Berdych in that game, he was still struggling to find his rhythm.
By the end of the next game, Djokovic was even more exasperated, whacking his racket into the ground after Berdych broke back to love.
Berdych saved a break point of his own when serving out the set, which he clinched with a strong forehand that Djokovic returned long.
Djokovic started to mumble to himself at deuce in the first game at the start of the second set, wiping his face with a towel as he tried to regain his composure. He saved a break point and then broke Berdych after a fine lob and a flurry of volleys at the net.
As the set wore on, Berdych — who was taken to three sets by Murray and also by Japan’s Kei Nishikori in the third round — began to tire. A double break in the third set put Djokovic in complete control at 4-0.
