Los Angeles Angels superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout went a combined six-for-10 from the plate on Friday, but their side still went down 5-4 on the road to the Baltimore Orioles after a ninth-inning collapse.
There were three runs scored in the opening six innings, and all three came from one Mike Trout swing in the third frame, sending a 376-foot shot to left-field to open up a 3-0 lead.
Angels starting pitcher Reid Detmers was spectacular, allowing just two hits and one walk in six scoreless innings, striking out seven batters.
But when Detmers was withdrawn, the Orioles finally found their offense, with Ramon Urias getting them on the board with his RBI single in the seventh inning.
Ryan Mountcastle's RBI base hit an inning later trimmed the lead 3-2, but the game appeared to be put to bed in the top of the ninth inning when Ohtani connected on a 418-foot blast to center-field.
Trailing by two, with two outs in the last inning, the Orioles were able to reduce the margin to one run when rookie Adley Rutschman delivered a clutch RBI double into the gap at right-center.
As the very next batter, Cedric Mullins tied the game when his base hit brought Rutschman in to score, and after a wild pitch put Mullins into scoring position, the comeback was completed as Trey Mancini came through with the Orioles' third consecutive hit to win the game.
Raisel Iglesias takes the loss and the blown save for the Angels, giving up four hits and three earned runs in two-thirds of an inning.
For Ohtani, it was his 19th home run of the campaign – only 12 players have more this season. Trout is one of those 12 players, with his long-ball registering as his 24th, good for fourth in the majors.
Phillies pitchers dominate in St. Louis
Zack Wheeler and Alec Bohm put on a show as the Philadelphia Phillies made some unique history in their 2-0 shutout win against the St. Louis Cardinals.
Wheeler pitched seven rock-solid innings, giving up five hits and one walk without conceding a run, with Seranthony Dominguez and Brad Hand also delivering a scoreless frame each to close it out.
With the bat, Bohm scored both of the Phillies' runs with a solo home run in the sixth inning, and then another in the eighth inning.
It was the first time in MLB history that a team has won 2-0 with a multi-homer game by a player eighth or ninth in their side's batting order.
Yankees smack the Red Sox
The New York Yankees have won the first two fixtures of their four-game road series against the Boston Red Sox, hammering the home side 12-5.
Despite a poor outing from Yankees starter Nestor Cortes, where he was withdrawn in the fourth inning after giving up eight hits and two walks for four runs, the Yankees' bats were able to pick up the slack.
Aaron Judge went a disappointing zero-for-five at the plate, but Matt Carpenter and Josh Donaldson were able to hit home runs, and the Yankees racked up 14 hits as a team, although the Red Sox also had 13.
D.J. LeMahieu, Carpenter, Gleyber Torres, Aaron Hicks and Jose Trevino all finished with multi-hit games for the pinstripes as they extended their league-leading record to 61-23 – six games clear of the second-placed Houston Astros.
Adam Svensson followed up his terrific 10-under opening round in solid fashion, finishing Friday with a five-under 67 to sit at 15 under, two strokes clear of the chasing pack.
After posting two birdies and two eagles on the four par-fives in his first trip around the course, Svensson came back to earth with one birdie and three pars, but a string of three birdies from four holes on his front-nine left him in a strong position.
While he is the leader going into the weekend, it remains to be seen if he will be the 36-hole leader as a lengthy five-hour rain delay wreaked havoc. It meant a number of contenders were forced to head off the course at the end of the day with plenty of holes remaining due to poor lighting.
In outright second place at 13 under is American Trey Mullinax, who had six birdies and seven pars through his first 13 holes on Friday before having to call it a day. He will resume at 8:30am, with a chance to begin the third round right up with Svensson if he can finish the way he started.
There is a seven-man logjam for third place at 12 under, and only three of those players – Mark Hubbard, Robin Roussel and Brandon Hagy – have made it through their full 36 holes.
Tom Lewis still has four holes to play, Jonathan Byrd has five holes to play, Matti Schmid has eight holes remaining and Max McGreevy had only made it through nine.
Hagy and Byrd were the standouts from that group on Friday, with Hagy posting a 10-under 62 for the round of the day, while Byrd had seven birdies across a nine-hole stretch and is yet to record a bogey.
International players Ricardo Gouveia of Portugal, Colombia's Camilo Villegas and Germany's Yannik Paul highlight the group at 11 under tied for 10th place, and they are six strokes clear of the projected cut-line.Golden State Warriors big man James Wiseman is set to make his return from a torn right meniscus on Sunday against the San Antonio Spurs in the Las Vegas Summer League.
Wiseman missed the entire 2021-22 season while recovering from the injury and had a plasma-rich injection in April to promote healing in the knee. He was cleared for full-contact workouts recently and is ready to engage in a competitive atmosphere.
Selected with the second overall pick in the 2020 draft, Wiseman averaged 11.5 points and 5.8 rebounds while shooting 51.9 percent from the floor in 39 games as a rookie.
He provides a strong defensive presence and could slot into a starting role next season or at least provide valuable depth for the defending NBA champions if healthy.
"I cannot wait to go out there and just play the game of basketball again. I’ve been through a lot of tough times," Wiseman said.
Without the 7-foot-1 Wiseman last season, Golden State used six-foot-nine Kevon Looney and six-foot-six Draymond Green at center, but Wiseman brings a level of vertical spacing and athleticism that is unique to the Warriors roster, making him a big part of their plans going forward.
Los Angeles Angels superstars Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout were among the players elected Friday to start in the MLB All-Star Game at Dodger Stadium on July 19.
Mookie Betts and Trea Turner will represent the host Los Angeles Dodgers, while Toronto Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk, Miami Marlins second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr., San Francisco Giants outfielder Joc Pederson, Chicago White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson and Turner were voted to start as first-time All-Stars.
Sluggers Miguel Cabrera of the Detroit Tigers and Albert Pujols of the St. Louis Cardinals were added to the rosters by commissioner Rob Manfred under a provision in the sport’s new labor agreement. It will be the 11th All-Star selection for Pujols and the 12th for Cabrera. The two future Hall-of-Famers have combined for five MVPs, and both are members of the 3,000-hit club.
''I've always looked up to Albert,'' Cabrera said. ''I've always followed his career. He's one of the best hitters I've ever seen in my life. To be part of this together is going to be great.''
Already named starters as the top vote-getters from the first round of balloting were outfielders Aaron Judge of the Yankees and Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves. Judge leads the majors with 30 home runs.
Joining Judge in the AL outfield will be teammate Giancarlo Stanton, making them the first pair of Yankees to start in the outfield together since Rickey Henderson and Davie Winfield in 1988.
The other AL starters are Blue Jays first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Houston Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, Boston Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers and Ohtani as the designated hitter.
The NL starters include Chicago Cubs catcher Willson Contreras, St. Louis first baseman Paul Goldschmidt, San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado and an outfield of Betts, Acuna and Pederson.
Philadelphia's Bryce Harper was elected as the National League's first DH following the expansion of the DH rule to both leagues, but will be replaced in the starting lineup after breaking his left thumb when hit by a pitch from San Diego's Blake Snell on June 25. Harper earned his seventh All-Star selection, his sixth as a starter.
Pitchers and reserves will be announced Sunday.
Jordan Spieth categorically rejected speculation surrounding a possible switch to LIV Golf.
Reports from Golf Monthly claimed Spieth was negotiating with the controversial Saudi-backed breakaway series.
However, Spieth took to Twitter to clear up any uncertainty.
"Because of false reporting today, I feel the need to comment. Let me be clear, any reports that I am contemplating competing anywhere other than the PGA Tour are categorically untrue," Spieth's post read.
"I am NOT in discussions with LIV. I have been quoted on the record for months that I fully support the PGA Tour and have never considered any alternatives.
"My goal has not changed since I began playing golf—to win PGA TOUR events and major Championships, and to compete against the best players in the world. Those who truly know me, know what is most important to me."
The emphatic denial of the reports comes hours after Golf Monthly published a statement by Spieth's agent, Jay Danzi.
"Jordan is not in discussions with LIV and is fully supportive of and happy on the PGA Tour," the statement said.
The same report that mentioned Spieth also listed Cam Smith, Henrik Stenson, Tommy Fleetwood and Hideki Matsuyama as players who were considering talks with LIV Golf.
The Portland Trail Blazers are nearing a two-year max extension with Damian Lillard worth $120million.
According to a report from Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, the extension – which will take his contract through the 2026-27 NBA season – will see the point guard paid $270m over the five years on his current contract.
Lillard is a six-time All-Star who has averaged 24.6 points per game since entering the league as the sixth pick in the 2012 draft.
Only four players – James Harden, Kevin Durant, LeBron James and Stephen Curry – have averaged more in that span.
However, he played only 29 games last season due to an abdominal injury and averaged 24 points per game, his fewest since his third season in the league in 2014-15 (21).
With Lillard on the sideline and former backcourt partner C.J. McCollum traded to the New Orleans Pelicans, the Blazers missed the playoffs for the first time since 2012-13 –Lillard's rookie year.
Despite the disappointing campaign, Lillard remains the face of the franchise and, by handing him a lucrative extension, the Blazers have made it clear he will continue to be the focal point as they look to get back among the contenders in the Western Conference.
Perhaps taking a page out of legendary Manchester United boss Alex Ferguson's playbook, it is out with the old at Manchester City and in with the new in what has been a busy transfer window to date.
On the back of winning a fourth Premier League title in five seasons, City have waved goodbye to long-serving and reliable midfielder Fernandinho, while sanctioning the exits of forwards Gabriel Jesus and Raheem Sterling – the latter's move to Chelsea expected to go through in the coming days.
It is undoubtedly a risk from City's perspective, not least with Jesus and Sterling joining fellow big-six clubs Arsenal and Chelsea respectively, but one the reigning English champions feel is worth taking as they freshen up their side.
Plenty of focus will undoubtedly be on new arrivals Erling Haaland, Julian Alvarez and Kalvin Phillips (sorry, Stefan Ortega), but Pep Guardiola will also need other squad members to step up in City's quest for more major honours.
That is a category Jack Grealish, now into his second season at the Etihad Stadium following last year's British record £100million transfer, fits into on the back of a rather mixed first 12 months or so in Manchester.
Unusually for such a big-money transfer, and for a player moving between clubs in the same league, Grealish was afforded a settling in period at City and occasionally went under the radar – right up until May's title celebrations, that is!
But with Sterling no longer around, the former Aston Villa star must now deliver if Guardiola's gamble is to pay off. Here, Stats Perform looks at exactly what Grealish offers to City, and the areas he can perhaps still improve.
GREALISH OVERLOOKED
Allowing Sterling to leave would not have been an easy decision for City, even if he did become more of a peripheral figure in his final 18 months or so at the club – coinciding with a 2-0 home loss to Manchester United in March 2021.
The versatile forward had started 70 per cent of City's games in all competitions between his debut and that loss to United, compared to 53 per cent of the Citizens' subsequent 77 matches.
He was named among the substitutes in both legs of the thrilling Champions League semi-final against Real Madrid, as well as the final-day showdown with Villa in the Premier League.
But rather tellingly, it was Sterling who Guardiola turned to from the bench in the first leg against Madrid, with Grealish playing a watching brief throughout, as was the case in that game against Villa when City were chasing three goals.
Put simply, Guardiola felt he had options better than Grealish when in need of goals. But with wide forwards Sterling and Jesus gone, that surely cannot be the case this season – unless, of course, the plan is to rely on Haaland up top.
THE STATS DON'T LIE
Grealish played 39 times for City in all competitions in his first season at the Etihad, 31 of those being starts, ranking him level with Riyad Mahrez (31 starts) and behind Sterling (32) and Phil Foden (36) in a similar area of the pitch. Jesus, incidentally, started just 28 games for City in 2021-22.
While that is a pretty telling statistic in its own right, Grealish's – let's face it – hugely underwhelming direct-goals involvement of just 10 in a high-scoring City side is what garnered the most attention when picking apart his first year under Guardiola.
Eight other City players directly contributed to more goals in all competitions last season, with Sterling registering 15 more combined goals and assists than Grealish. Mahrez, now well suited to playing in Guardiola's complex system, led the way with 33.
Grealish himself admitted midway through last season that he needed to play a bigger part in front of goal, but felt the statistics were not truly reflecting his performances in the final third.
"I think [stats] are important because at the end of the day that is what people look at such as how many goal involvements us attackers have. Especially when you come to a club with the price tag that I did," he said.
"If you don't get some [goals and assists] for a few games, everyone starts to talk. I think they are important but there will be times where you're playing well and the goals and assists just aren't coming. That's what I have felt recently.
"In the Watford game the other day I could have scored about four or five and I came off the pitch with nothing. Even the Leeds game, we scored seven goals as well and I only got one."
In that Watford game mentioned by Grealish, the England international finished with an expected goals (xG) value of 0.83 in his 68 minutes on the pitch but could not find the net from any of his five efforts, three of which were on target.
That compares to two goals from three shots for midfield team-mate Bernardo Silva from an xG of 0.28, with Sterling scoring City's other goal in that 3-1 Premier League win at Vicarage Road.
... OR DO THEY
That Watford game was very much a microcosm of Grealish's time at City to date, with the underlying figures backing up his previous point about his efforts perhaps not paying off.
His four assists in 2021-22, for example, came from an expected assists (xA) return of 7.08 – that differential of 3.08 being the highest of any City player. Effectively, had his team-mates put away certain chances, Grealish's season would have had a slightly more positive spin.
Indeed, the 78 chances created by the 26-year-old last season was bettered only by Kevin De Bruyne (129) among City players in all competitions, though just 10 of those were defined as 'big chances' by Opta, which is the same number as central defender Aymeric Laporte.
This is by no means to say Grealish's shortcomings last season were down to those around him. If he is to truly thrive under Guardiola, though, the shackles will surely have to be released if the Grealish that lit up the Premier League with Villa is to be seen again.
The Grealish that plays with freedom and flair – the reason Guardiola pushed hard for the club to pay a nine-figure sum for the transfer, after all – was there to see for England in their recent Nations League games.
He made a huge impact down the left-hand side from the bench with England trailing against Germany, managing six touches in the opposition box despite playing just 18 minutes, which was double that of any England player other than Harry Kane (seven).
Grealish then played a part in the incident that led to England being awarded a penalty in which Kane converted to snatch a 1-1 draw. That is very much the difference-making cameo Guardiola did not see enough of last time out.
The good news for Grealish is that he may be afforded more opportunities to get at opponents now that City have a target man in Haaland to aim for. The slick passing moves will not be done away with, as such, but Haaland is completely different in stature to any player City had up top last season.
And after a whole year of working under Guardiola, including a first pre-season, Grealish will now be far more accustomed to the demands expected of him if he is to become a regular in the starting line-up.
"I am just trying to keep improving all of the time and I know for a fact that the longer I am here the more I will improve," he added in that interview seven months ago.
With the old guard gone, the time has now arrived for Grealish to prove he has what it takes to thrive under Guardiola.
Jamaica’s UK-based Formula Woman driver, Sara Misir, is set to compete on Saturday, July 9 as the GT Cup Championship heads to Oulton Park in Cheshire, England.
Twenty-seven cars across four groups will join the grid for rounds 13 and 14.
Misir will compete in car number 65, alongside English teammate Steph Sore in a McLaren 570s GT4. The pair crossed the finish line in 7th and 9th place, respectively, in rounds 11 and 12 at the Snetterton Circuit on June 11 and 12.
“The first race day was about getting accustomed to competing on the circuit as a team," Misir said. "We started slowly but gained momentum as the races progressed. For Oulton Park, it’s the toughest circuit for both car and driver but I’m confident we’ll rise to this new challenge.”
Misir last competed at the “Clash of the Titans” JRDC meet at the Dover Raceway in St. Ann on July 3, where she dominated with three wins from three races in the Modified Production Class III.
The Oulton Park leg marks the fourth weekend of the 2022 GT Cup season.
Sergio Perez will start Saturday's sprint race at the Austrian Grand Prix in 13th after being dropped down the grid for exceeding track limits.
The Red Bull driver, who trails team-mate Max Verstappen by 34 points in the drivers' championship, provisionally qualified fourth at the Red Bull Ring.
However, the Mexican had his Q3 times and the fastest lap in Q2 that got him into the top-10 shoot-out deleted for track-limit violations.
Several drivers had lap times deleted throughout qualifying in Spielberg as they battled high winds and struggled to keep wheels on the track, especially at the final corner before the start/finish straight.
Perez must now work his way through the field in the sprint to get into the top-eight point-scoring positions and improve his place on the grid for Sunday's feature race at his team's home grand prix.
Verstappen, by contrast, will start on pole ahead of the two Ferraris and Mercedes' George Russell.
Perez said after qualifying: "Yes, it was a tricky day. Already from FP1 things didn't feel great so a bit of understanding on our side and yes, hopefully tomorrow we are able to recover.
"I wasn't able to get into the rhythm – so some understanding [needed] but obviously now it's sprint tomorrow, and a long race ahead.
"So we have got to keep our heads down and push hard for tomorrow's sprint to try to make some progress and get a good position for Sunday's race."
World number one Scottie Scheffler, Collin Morikawa and Justin Thomas all missed the cut at the Scottish Open as Matt Fitzpatrick and Xander Schauffele moved into contention behind leader Cameron Tringale.
Masters champion Scheffler followed up a three-over 73 with a 72 for the second round, putting him 12 strokes behind Tringale, who came back down to earth with a 72 following his stunning nine-under 61 in the opening round, failing to recover after a run of five bogeys in six holes.
Morikawa, who will defend his Open title at St Andrews next week, will also miss the weekend following a four-over 74 that took him to five over. He made the turn four over and a further bogey at the second, and a double at the fourth cancelled out three birdies on his back nine.
US PGA champion Thomas endured a nightmare day at The Renaissance Club, carding eight bogeys and a double for his 77, which dropped him to 10 over par.
World number eight Viktor Hovland, Will Zalatoris and Hideki Matsuyama also missed the cut, as did Ian Poulter, playing on the co-sanctioned DP World Tour and PGA Tour event despite his defection to LIV Golf. Poulter finished 10 over.
But U.S. Open champion Fitzpatrick and Schauffele remain firmly in the hunt.
They are each four shots off the pace, though Fitzpatrick's 66 would have been even better if not for successive bogeys on his final two holes.
Schauffele went one better with a 65, his round starting at the 10th with an eagle and ending with a well-executed chip in for birdie at the par-three ninth.
Jordan Smith is also three under after his second round, the Englishman winning himself and his caddie a car with a hole-in-one on the 17th, only to follow it with a closing bogey and card a 69.
Tringale's American compatriots Gary Woodland and Doug Ghim are his closest challengers on four under.
Ghim is in position to secure a place at St Andrews as the highest-placed player not already sure of a place in the field. Kurt Kitayama (three under) and Rafa Cabrera Bello (two under) would also qualify as it stands.
Lewis Hamilton is "incredibly disappointed" in himself after both he and Mercedes team-mate George Russell crashed out of qualifying ahead of the Austrian Grand Prix.
The precursor for Saturday's sprint race in Spielberg proved a dramatic one, with Red Bull's Max Verstappen taking pole ahead of Ferrari pair Charles Leclerc and Carlos Sainz.
Hamilton has yet to win a race this season after 10 rounds but looked good value to compete for pole until losing control into Turn 7, causing him to skid into the barriers.
That crash in Q3 ruined his chance of starting high up the grid on Saturday, with the seven-time world champion instead down in 10th.
Russell did not fare much better as he caused another red flag after spinning into the barriers at the final corner on a day to forget for Mercedes.
Team boss Toto Wolff told the duo they "should not beat themselves up", adding: "I'd rather have a fast car and a qualifying like this than not having the pace to be in the top four."
But Hamilton, who had been fastest at the start of Q2, was upset that he could not see out the job at Red Bull Ring.
"It was a big hit but I'm okay," he told Sky Sports. "I'm incredibly disappointed in myself ultimately and so sorry to the team who worked so hard to put this car together.
"I lost the back end into Turn 7 and that was that. I'm encouraged. I'm encouraged of course to see our performance. We weren't expecting for it to be as close as that today.
"That is a huge positive from the team but I am really quite far back [for the sprint] so I don't know what is possible from there. Hopefully I can make up for some lost time."
Following Hamilton and Russell's crashes, there was time for one final lap for the remaining eight drivers.
Leclerc and Sainz looked set to claim a Ferrari one-two, only for Verstappen – who has now taken the last three pole positions on this track – to post a time of 1:04.984
That was 29 thousandths of a second quicker than Leclerc and leaves Verstappen well positioned to surpass Alain Prost for the most victories at the Austrian GP (three apiece).
"It was a very long wait of course between the two runs," the Dutchman said. "That is never great as once you are in the rhythm you want to keep going.
"Also the track temperature dropping, the wind changing a little bit, but in the end it was a very tight qualifying and it is a really challenging track to get everything right.
"There aren't many corners but the ones you have are quite tricky and easy to make a mistake. I'm quite happy with pole but also tomorrow and Sunday you can get the points.
"It's incredible to see the crowd here and see so much orange. It puts a smile on my face and hopefully we can make it a great weekend."
Verstappen leads team-mate Sergio Perez by 34 points heading into the weekend's action, while Leclerc is 43 points behind after failing to build on a bright start to the season.
After pushing Verstappen all the way in qualifying for the 24-lap sprint, which establishes the grid for the main grand prix, Leclerc is hoping to do likewise over the next two days.
"I just want to have a clean race," he said. "It's been five races where I've had a bit of a disaster on my side.
"I just hope that everything will go clean in the weekend and we can finally score the points that we deserve."
PROVISIONAL CLASSIFICATION
1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull) 1:04.984
2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari) +0.029
3. Carlos Sainz (Ferrari) +0.082
4. Sergio Perez (Red Bull) +0.420
5. George Russell (Mercedes) +0.447
6. Esteban Ocon (Alpine) +0.742
7. Kevin Magnussen (Haas) +0.895
8. Mick Schumacher (Haas) +1.027
9. Fernando Alonso (Alpine) +1.119
10. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) +8.167
Haiti made a winning start to its bid to claim the title left vacant by six-time winners Barbados when they came from behind to defeat Jamaica 3-1 (23-25, 25-16, 25-16, 25-21) in their 2021 Caribbean Zonal Volleyball Association Junior Men (Under-21) Championship round-robin opener at the Southern Regional Indoor Sports Arena.
Haiti’s coach Junior Siecle was a satisfied man afterwards.
"I'm very pleased with the win but going forward we still have to make some corrections as I'm not satisfied with our blocking," he said.
Meanwhile, team captain Dieulengy Relis said the team didn’t start as well as they would have preferred but they are happy to come away with the win.
“We started off a bit slow but then we found our momentum and played much better as the match went along," he said.
"We are very happy to start with the win, and now we must continue to improve to win our other matches as well.”
Jamaica’s coach Steve Davis said fatigued played a major role in his team’s performance.
"We are not ones to make excuses but we reached in late and also had a long stay in immigration,” he said.
"Apart from that, we also had little preparation time at home due to exams and we know that our players can improve their level of play and will improve in the next match.”
Andrae Robb captain of Jamaica also said he felt his team was badly affected by their travel schedule and a lack of confidence.
"We know where we fell short in this match and we need to improve for our next encounter," he said.
Haiti will take on Suriname on Saturday, July 9 at noon in the five-nation round-robin winner-take-all competition while Jamaica will have a short turn-around as it plays host Trinidad and Tobago on Friday.
Novak Djokovic told fans to "expect fireworks" when he faces Nick Kyrgios in his record-breaking 32nd grand slam final at Wimbledon on Sunday.
Djokovic surpassed Roger Federer (31) for the most major finals among male players with his four-set victory over Cam Norrie in Friday's semi-final.
It means he will now face Kyrgios, who progressed without playing after Rafael Nadal withdrew from their last-four meeting due to an abdominal injury.
The six-time Wimbledon champion has never beaten Kyrgios, losing each of their previous meetings in Acapulco and Indian Wells in 2017 in straight sets.
Their third encounter could be one high on emotion. Djokovic appeared to blow kisses towards a heckler in the Centre Court crowd after defeating Norrie while Kyrgios, known for his on-court outbursts, was recently involved in an extremely tempestuous third-round clash with fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas.
"One thing's for sure, there's going to be a lot of fireworks emotionally from both [of us]," Djokovic said on court afterwards.
"It's going to be his first grand slam final obviously he's very, very excited, he doesn't have much to lose and he's always playing like that.
"He's playing so freely, one of the biggest serves in the game, just big game overall, a lot of power in his shots.
"We haven't played for some time. I've never won a set off him so hopefully it can be different this time.
"It's another final for me here in Wimbledon with the tournament that I love so much so hopefully the experience can work in my favour."
Novak Djokovic is a win away from a seventh Wimbledon title after coming back from a set down to end Cameron Norrie's dream home run at the All England Club.
Norrie was looking to become the first British man to reach the final at the All England Club since Andy Murray's triumph in 2016.
He appeared to have Djokovic unsettled when he won the first set in startlingly comfortable fashion.
However, Djokovic, as he has done so often, recovered superbly to storm to a 2-6 6-3 6-2 6-4 victory and set up a final with Nick Kyrgios, who benefited from Rafael Nadal's withdrawal through injury.
The pair traded breaks in the first two games, but Norrie struck a key blow in the fifth game when Djokovic hit long off a low backhand from the Briton. Djokovic fired into the net two games later to hand Norrie a third break of a set he wrapped up with an ace despite two double faults.
Djokovic responded by placing Norrie under sustained pressure on serve and it told in the eighth game of the second when the ninth seed pushed a forehand long, and he did the same off the backhand side as the Serbian levelled the match.
Norrie ballooned a forehand long in the opening game of the third to give the break to Djokovic, who raced away in style thereafter.
An excellent return off a Norrie second serve gave Djokovic a break in the first game of the fourth and he would not be prevented from reaching the finish line despite the home hope's spirited effort.
Data Slam: Djokovic's resilience shines through again
Djokovic has now won 12 of his last 14 grand slam matches after losing the first set. The only exceptions in that run came in the 2021 US Open final defeat to Daniil Medvedev and in the French Open quarter-final loss to Nadal this year.
With neither of those opponents in his way, Djokovic will be expected to claim a 21st grand slam title with triumph over Kyrgios.
WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS
Djokovic – 38/28
Norrie – 33/36
ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS
Djokovic – 13/1
Norrie – 7/3
BREAK POINTS WON
Djokovic – 5/14
Norrie - 3/4
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