Australian Open 2021 day nine: Djokovic faces Zverev after Williams beats Halep – live!

8.18am EST 08:18

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 5-6 Zverev* Zverev has rebounded really well since being broken, and rushes through a second straight love hold. If Djokovic is to clinch the match ereannar, it’ll need to be by way of breaker.

8.14am EST 08:14

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 5-5 Zverev Oh! In at the net on 15-all, Djokovic skps into a large forehand, then somehow nets a simple volley! Zverev is two points from the set! So down comes an ace, obviously, then a smash into the corner … but Zverev makes deuce by sending a forehand out wide, then dunking the resultant floater. So down comes another ace, obviously – that’s 20-19 in Djokovic’s favour – make that 21-19! It’d mad to still be improving when you’re as good and as old as Djokovic is – I like to think he’s been watching James anderson bowl.

8.08am EST 08:08

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 4-5 Zverev* We’re into a fourth hour as Zverev rattles through a love hold – the first of the set, and a huge staging post for the German who needs to show himself that he can hang tough when the rhythm gets ruff and the DJ says I think you’ve had enough.

8.05am EST 08:05

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 4-4 Zverev At 30-15, Djokovic slices into the net and if I’m Zverev – I’m wearing a sleeveless top – I’m unloading the suitcase at whatever comes at me next. Instead, they go backhand slice to backhand slice, constructing the longest rally of the match … and Zverev takes it when Djokovic nets with a forehand. From 30-0 to break point! But Djokovic quickly restores the order of things, a huge forehand earning him deuce … only to go long with the same shot! But a terrific drop shot regains deuce, and as the rallies get longer it’s Zverev who looks wearier, slightly slow in picking up another drop, and a nails inside-out forehand secures a monumental hold. That was a really great game, but Djokovic just had that little bit more, as he almost always does.

7.56am EST 07:56

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 3-4 Zverev* And there’s one, except Djokovic somehow gets it back and wins the point … so Zverev retorts with a clean ace followed by a boomer out wide and a forehand to the opposite corner for 30-15. Djokovic, though, looks set to claim the next point when he advances to the net and prepares a forehand down the line … only to take his eye off the ball, which flies away off the edge of his frame; you don’t see that very often, and Zverev takes advantage to close out from there. He needed that.

7.52am EST 07:52

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 3-3 Zverev But who knows! Zverev takes Djokovic on from the back and induces the backhand error … so, er, well, um, Djokovic responds with aces 17 and 18. The quicker courts are working well for him in that aspect, but after a long rally he plants a forehand wide; Zverev still has a chance here. I typed that but I didn’t believe it, and another fine serve from Djokovic allows him the quick forehand clean-up, and a further step-in forehand levels the set. If Zverev can’t rediscover his first serve next up, he’s in a world of trouble.

7.46am EST 07:46

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 2-3 Zverev* Eesh, Djokovic somehow returns a punishing serve and makes 15-all, then Zverev responds with a double; we’ve seen this before, and a less venomous second serve allows Djokovic into the point, Zverev quickly going long on the forehand. I barely need to type the words, bit two break points to the good, Djokovic metronomically drops balls onto the baseline until Zverev can’t take any more. It seems fairly clear where this is going, as it always has.

7.42am EST 07:42

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 1-3 Zverev A double break would set the Pfizer among the anti-vax and Zverev earns himself two break points, both saved in short order. But then Djokovic goes long with a forehand … but then Djokovic clouts a forehand winner into to the corner, guides a volley safe, and rips a service winner. Zverev can hear him coming…

7.37am EST 07:37

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 0-3 Zverev* At 15-30, Djokovic arrives at a backhand in plenty of tie to find a winner, only to send his shot hurtling wide; this development delights him as much as you’d expect. But another double hands Djokovic break point … only for him to overhit a backhand when dealt a powderpuff second serve! So Zverev does likewise but then plays two good points before a monstrous serve out wide clinches the game. That’s a colossal hold for Zverev, who offered two breaking opportunities with double faults but saved both. It’s a strange match is this, neither player able to sustain their form and though you assume Djokovic will find a way to bring it home, if Zverev serves well from here on in, he’s struggling.

7.30am EST 07:30

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 0-2 Zverev I should note, Zverev is wearing a sleeveless top which suggests iffy self-esteem. But he canes down a smash for 30-all from 30-0 and then defends brilliantly before spiriting a sensational backhand pass down the line when Djokovic comes in behind muck; break point Zverev. And he’s got it! A forehand to the corner is too good, and I do not know what to think! Djokovic goes to bash the ball at something or someone, then thinks better of it.

7.25am EST 07:25

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 0-1 Zverev* It’s hard to see Zverev coming back from that – he knows he’s unreliable under pressure, and he’s crumbled twice in this match alone. He holds easily, but getting between Djokovic and the finish line is like getting between a hippo and the water.

7.20am EST 07:20

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 6-4 Zverev Zverev makes 0-15 but a service winner wipes out his advantage and a forehand that drops long takes Djokovic two points away. An ace out wide follows – what a total monster – and another fine serve allows him to dictate a rally, finally ended by a poor forehand from Zverev that drops long. From 1-4 and 0-30, Djokovic won five straight games, and he is so so good … but that is so so so bad from Zverev, who had no business tossing the set in the way that he did.

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic recovers from hitting a return against Germany’s Alexander Zverev. Photograph: William West/AFP/Getty Images

Updated at 7.24am EST

7.17am EST 07:17

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 5-4 Zverev* Er, maybe. Djokovic is quickly at 0-30, then a protracted rally sees Zverev yanked to the net to hit a winner … but he either hits at yerman, yerman anticipates where it’s going or both, and a stop-volley raises three break points. Djokovic only needs one, Zverev netting a backhand for no good reason and things have changed very quickly. In commentary, they note that when things went against Djokovic, he destroyed his racket whereas Zverev is nonplussed; and though what’s going on is more nuanced than that, one of these knows how to win and the other knows how to lose. Djokovic will now serve for the set.

7.12am EST 07:12

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 4-4 Zverev Djokovic is back in charge now, storming through a hold to 15. Has Zverev missed his chance?

7.09am EST 07:09

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 3-4 Zverev* Zverev clatters down another ace, but his first double of the match and a fine backhand cross-court help Djokovic to 30-40 and a second chance to break back. Zverev being Zverev, he chooses this moment to double-fault again, and we’re back on serve in set three.

7.04am EST 07:04

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 2-4 Zverev Djokovic asks for his racket mess to be cleared up; maybe he should do it himself. But a ball kid arrives with dustpan and brush – there’s no sitting down this time, I wonder why not – and Zverev quickly makes 0-30. The fluctuations in this match have been odd and we’ve yet to have both players playing well together, but Djokovic gathers himself and wins four straight points.

7.00am EST 07:00

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 1-4 Zverev* The players have to wait for new balls, so Djokovic sits himself down on the court like a petulant toddler … then wins the first point of the game. Of course he does. So Zverev responds with an ace. Of course he does. But Zverev then nets a backhand after Djokovic defends well to stay in it … before Djokovic goes long with a backhand. Zverev is stepping into the ball now, two crushing backhands into the same corner giving him game point … but then he goes long and we’re at deuce. This is a crucial passage coming up, and after Zverev opens the court with a serve out wide, he sends his clean-up backhand to the opposite corner … and needlessly long. No matter, a bousting second serve opens the angle for a forehand winner and when he makes advantage following a backhand error from Djokovic, ole Nole destroys his racket; that’ll teach it. An ace down the middle then secures the hold, and Zverev knows how important that is, hollering his approval.

6.52am EST 06:52

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 1-3 Zverev At 40-30, Djokovic tries a lazy drop and Zverev runs it down … but goes long. That puts Djokovic on the board in set three, but, he’s not playing as well as he was.

6.47am EST 06:47

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 0-3 Zverev* Victoria is out of lockdown tonight, so crowds can come back in tomorrow; I guess that’s good news, sort of, and there’s certainly good news for Zverev, who caps a love hold with an ace down the middle. This was not a momentum shift I foresaw.

6.45am EST 06:45

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 0-2 Zverev A long backhand from Djokovic offers Zverev an opening and two mass-murderous forehands, the second a wrong-footer, gives him 0-30. And have a look! At 15-30, a short ball sits up for punishment … and Djokovic whacks it long! An ace saves the first break point … but a double, his fourth of the match to Zverev’s none, hands the German the advantage! He did not have to work for that.

6.42am EST 06:42

Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 0-1 Zverev* Zverev had to extend himself unduly in winning that first set, and in so doing allowed Djokovic to find his range – an error for which he was punished in the second. Ultimately, his only hoping of pulling this off is to serve like God and his level returns here – he holds to 15, offering not a sniff.

6.35am EST 06:35

*Djokovic (6)6-7 6-2 Zverev Have a look! Djokovic plays a single-handed backhand and Zverev murders one of his own down the line for 0-30! But Djokovic isn’t fazed, his forehand dominating the next point, and when Zverev makes a backhand error, all Djokovic needs for the set is two aces, so that’s all he does. The cosmos is righting itself.

6.30am EST 06:30

Djokovic (6)6-7 5-2 Zverev* Zverev won’t be wanting Djokovic to serve first in set three so needs to hold here and does – as Barry Davies might say.

6.28am EST 06:28

*Djokovic (6)6-7 5-1 Zverev Zverev gets a point off Djokovic’s serve, so Djokovic bangs an ace down the middle to seal it. He’s serving a lot of aces at the moment which, when you’re already the best returner around, spells grief for your opponents.

6.25am EST 06:25

Djokovic (6)6-7 4-1 Zverev* Djokovic has won eight Aussie Opens – including the last two – from eight finals played; that’s an absolute joke. But Zverev is on the board in set two, muscling through a revitalising love hold. The first set took nearly an hour; this one’s been going less than 15 minutes.

6.22am EST 06:22

*Djokovic (6)6-7 4-0 Zverev Djokovic opens the game with an ace spinning out wide, then makes 30-0 with a dismissive forehand. A service winner, out wide again, comes next – typical Djokovic, beating his opponent at their own game – and quickly completes a fourth straight love hold.

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic hits a return against Germany’s Alexander Zverev. Photograph: David Gray/AFP/Getty Images

Updated at 6.39am EST

6.19am EST 06:19

Djokovic (6)6-7 3-0 Zverev* Yeah, Zverev has that confused look on his phizog when he finds himself at 0-30, but then bases a backhand down the line so well that Djokovic applauds. That guy is so magnanimous! I love that guy! Djokovic is going to Zverev’s backhand a lot at the moment, another another winner off it makes 30-all … but then he goes long from down by his ankles, after which a superbly constructed point by Djokovic, finished with a backhand down the lie and into the corner, establishes the double break. Things have changed very extremely quickly.

6.14am EST 06:14

*Djokovic (6)6-7 2-0 Zverev That break was so crushingly predictable and Zverev will be just as aware of that as Djokovic, who consolidates to love. That’s eight of nine points for him, and momentum might just be shifting.

6.12am EST 06:12

Djokovic (6)6-7 1-0 Zverev* Zverev needs to keep focused here – only he knows what it took to win that first set, but we all know what happens if he drops below that level. And there you go – at 15-30 he goes long with a backhand after which my SkyGo drops out and returns to confirm that yes, Zverev lost focus right when he knew it was danger, did it anyway and lost his serve as a consequence.

6.06am EST 06:06

Djokovic (6)6-7 Zverev A tremendous serve from Djokovic allows him to save set point with a forehand winner, but then Zverev reads a drop and glides a backhand down the line which facilitates a smash. That raises a third set point for Zverev, this one on his own serve, and when Djokovic can only block back a second effort, he goes in front – as he ought to have done quite some time ago.

Alexander Zverev of Germany in action. Photograph: Dave Hunt/AAP

Updated at 6.20am EST

6.02am EST 06:02

Djokovic 6-6 (5-6) Zverev No one’s holding it down now – when that happens there’s only one winner – and Zverev loses a second consecutive service point thanks to an imprecise forehand. But he finds a colossal forehand when he needs it, cleaning up with an overhead, and we’re back level … until Djokovic finds an ace. The pressure ratchets up a notch as such, but Zverev goes out wide as he ought to have done when serving for the set and despatches a further smash, the rinses an ace down the T; set point, but on the Djokovic serve.

5.58am EST 05:58

Djokovic 6-6 (3-3) Zverev Djokovic knows that when things get tight so will Zverev – he made three unforced forehand errors when serving for the set – and shonuff, when made to play an extra ball at 0-1 in the breaker, he goes long with the backhand. But he’s quickly back at 2-2 and then properly steps into a succession of forehands to seize a mini-break of his own. But he can’t consolidate it, Djokovic’s forehand inciting him to net.

5.54am EST 05:54

Djokovic 6-6 Zverev* Zverev holds easily, and we have ourselves a breaker.

5.52am EST 05:52

*Djokovic 6-5 Zverev Yeah, welcome to the real match, Sascha. Djokovic holds to love and both players look different, Djokovic having eaten a mushroom and Zverev having lost his.

5.49am EST 05:49

Djokovic 5-5 Zverev* Here we go. Djokovic finds a fine return down the line, backs it up with a solid backhand that takes him to the net; Zverev can’t pass. Another fine return then makes 0-30 and Zverev is tightening, playing percentages instead of seeking the monsters out wide that have been so definitive so far. But there’s one! After outlasting Djokovic in a baseline slog for 15-30, he clobbers a service-winner out wide … before going down the middle again. Why? Djokovic returns easily, Zverev nets, and here’s a break-back point! A 25-strike rally ensues, this is what Djokovic wants, and Zverev drops a forehand long, of course he does – he’s made three unforced errors in this game. He served beautifully in this set, especially out wide, then changed it up – we can only assume because of nerves – and was made to pay.

Updated at 5.54am EST

5.43am EST 05:43

*Djokovic 4-5 Zverev Djokovic is going to need some breakers to win this, I think, because he’s struggling to do much with Zverev’s serve as Zverev is with his, save that early aberration. But as I type that, a fine return followed by a winner down the line turn 30-0 into 30-all, then Djokovic dumps a forehand into the net for deuce. That was very uncharacteristic, and in commentary they reckon that shot “looked sore”; it’s hard to know how bad his stomach is because if it was even slightly so, you’d think it’d stop him from playing. Anyhow, a backhand winner from Zverev earns him set point, then a backhand winner, on the run and down the line from Djokovic, saves it, before a succession of unconverted Djokovic advantages until one is eventually take to end a nine-minute game. Zverev will have to serve for it.

5.34am EST 05:34

Djokovic 3-5 Zverev* Zverev has such a high toss, and he brings the racket down so true – or truly, as the case may be, grammar massive. Again, he holds easily, and Djokovic is in a spot of trouble here.

5.30am EST 05:30

*Djokovic 3-4 Zverev Djokovic races through a love hold, but needs to find a way of attacking the Zverev serve. I’ve no idea how he does that.

5.28am EST 05:28

Djokovic 2-4 Zverev* Zverev is doing a good job of making first serves, and when he misses one at 0-15 he finds a high kicker like Stefan Edberg in his prime. Very quickly, it’s 40-15, and an ace out wide secures the game; Djokovic isn’t getting close to breaking him at the moment.

5.24am EST 05:24

*Djokovic 2-3 Zverev There’s no real pattern to the match so far, both players hitting good shots and bad shots in various positions. At 40-30, Djokovic tries a backhand drop which Zverev is ready to run down, but it hits the net … and at advantage, Djokovic makes his 12th and 12th unforced errors of the match so far. But he saves break point with an ace, follows up with another, and then cements an important hold.

5.19am EST 05:19

Djokovic 1-3 Zverev* Djokovic gets 0-15; a service winner follows, then an ace. Zverev is 6’6, which makes such a huge difference; a while ago, I was talking to an agent on behalf of a young player, and the first question I was asked was how tall is he. A further ace, sliced out wide Ivanisevic-style, follows at 40-15, and if Zverev keeps this up he’s a hard night for anyone.

Alexander Zverev on action. Photograph: Dean Lewins/EPA

Updated at 5.26am EST

5.15am EST 05:15

*Djokovic 1-2 Zverev A poor drop for Djokovic hands Zverev 0-15, quickly rescued by a service winner down the T. He holds to 15, and is in the match.

5.12am EST 05:12

Djokovic 0-2 Zverev* Zverev catapults through a love hold in minus time, and is something happening here?

5.10am EST 05:10

*Djokovic 0-1 Zverev Djokovic is averaging 15 aces a match and he sticks one in here, but then finds himself at deuce and goes long with the forehand! Zverev has an immediate break point, and will know he’s unlikely to get many chances so needs to snaffle this. he doesn’t, because he doesn’t have to – Djokovic sends down a second double of the game, and that’s the break! Given how well Zverev is serving, that could be crucial, and what a good call he made to receive!

4.57am EST 04:57

I suppose Zverev has beaten Djokovic at the ATP finals, but this isn’t that. Djokovic is desperate to finish his career with more majors than anyone else and will have to play badly to lose because he’s just much better.

4.54am EST 04:54

Zverev has never beaten a top-10 player at a major and will have to go some to win this. But he’s serving well and Djokovic isn’t fully fit so maybe this is his time … yet conversely, maybe it isn’t.

4.48am EST 04:48

Coming up next, as Mike Goldberg might say: Novak Djokovic v Alexander Zverev. Truly, there is nothing more godly than working-day sport.

4.47am EST 04:47

So there we go: a very very good performance from Serena, and with plenty of scope for improvement. Simona wasn’t quite there, but she wasn’t allowed to be either – though Serena made a load of unforced errors, she found even more winners and most noteworthy of all, her movement and retrieval was absolutely on point. If Osaka plays well, she’ll still need to find another level, but it’s there for her and she knows it is, not something that’s been so for a while.

4.44am EST 04:44

Serena tells Jim Courier that she realised she was making a lot of unforced errors in the games she lost so told herself to stay in there. She says that was the best match she’s played this tournament and she had to, playing against the number 2 in the world, so she’s excited. She agrees that her de-fence was good today – her coach told her it had to be, but she didn’t really work on it in the off-season as she was mainly getting healthy. She has cameras everywhere, apparently, and there’s some kind of thing in the works but she won’t say what. Asked about the seh-mye, she says that Osaka is a great player, inspiring on and off the court; she’s been watching her and is sure the reverse is so.

4.39am EST 04:39

Williams 6-3 6-3 Halep* Serena has played pretty well today – Simona knows that she needs to finish points quickly because if she doesn’t a winner is imminent, and she’s not quite managing it. It’s no great shock to see Serena glide to 0-30, but then Simona finds a sensational backhand down the line, hammered flat for her first point in nine, but then she’s pinned in the back corner and can’t fight her way out, netting to hand Serena two match points. The first disappears when a forehand goes long, but a wondrous backhand return sets up a forehand cross-court winner into the corner, and that is a majestic, beauteous performance from the greatest of all-time. She plays Osaka next; I cannot wait for that.

Serena Williams celebrates after defeating Romania’s Simona Halep. Photograph: Hamish Blair/AP

Updated at 5.03am EST