SYDNEY, January 23. /TASS/. Italian Jannik Sinner advanced on Tuesday to the semifinals of this year’s first Grand Slam tournament, the 2024 Australian Open, after defeating Russian tennis star Andrey Rublev earlier in the day.

In a match that lasted two hours and 40 minutes, the 4th-seeded Sinner took down Russia’s Rublev (seeded 5th) in straight sets 6-4; 7-6 (7-5); 6-3.

"Today was three sets but I could’ve lost both [the first two sets]. He had so many break points and I served really well," the tournament’s official website quoted Sinner as saying after the match.

"At 5-1 [in the tiebreak] we changed ends and it was a little bit windy so I knew I had a little bit of advantage," the Italian continued. "These kind of moments I really love to play. This is what I practice for and I’m really excited when we have these pressure points. It went my way today."

Sinner, 22, is now set to face off in the semifinals against defending champion and World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who earlier in the day defeated Taylor Fritz of the United States in four sets 7-6 (7-3); 4-6; 6-2; 6-3.

Asked about his expectations for the semifinal encounter against the Serbian legend, Sinner said: "I’m really lucky to face him again."

According to official statistics from the ATP’s official website, Djokovic and Sinner have met six times, with the Serbian player having the edge with four wins.

"This is one of the biggest tournaments in the world, happy that I can play against the number one in the world - he's won here some times - but it’s going to be tough," the Italian player noted.

"The only thing I can control is that I will give 100% and fight for every ball. We’ll see what the outcome will be," Sinner added.

The Italian is currently ranked 4th in the ATP World Rankings and has 10 ATP tournament titles to his name. In reaching the semifinals at the 2024 Australian Open, Sinner ties his best result on the Grand Slam circuit, as he also reached the semis at Wimbledon in 2023. In addition, he won the 2023 Davis Cup as part of the Italian national team.

As of today, Rublev, 26, is ranked 5th in the ATP World Rankings and has won 15 ATP tournament titles, two of those wins coming this year. He has also appeared in numerous Grand Slam tournaments, albeit never advancing beyond the quarterfinals. Rublev took home the gold at the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo in mixed doubles (with teammate Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova) and also won the 2021 Davis Cup as part of the Russian national team.

The 2024 Australian Open tournament is being played on hard courts at Melbourne Park from January 14-28 and has a purse of $57.8 mln in prize money up for grabs. The opening tournament of the annual Grand Slam series in Australia marks its 112th edition this year. Serbia’s Novak Djokovic and Belarus’ Aryna Sabalenka are the reigning Australian Open champions in men’s and women’s singles, respectively.