World number one Novak Djokovic on Saturday battled past Italian Lorenzo Sonego to set up a clash with nine-time winner Rafael Nadal for the sixth time in the Italian Open final.
Defending champion Djokovic won 6-3, 6-7 (5/7), 6-2 in two hours and 44 minutes against the 33rd-ranked Italian after second seed Nadal earlier swept past American Reilly Opelka 6-4, 6-4.
Djokovic had earlier survived a three-set battle with Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas in their rain-delayed quarterfinal.
The five-time Rome champion had been trailing 6-4, 2-1 when the tie was halted overnight. But the 33-year-old came back to win 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 after more than three-and-a-quarter hours.
Djokovic an…
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