Djokovic also equalled Monica Seles’ record of 33 consecutive wins at the Major, which he could break on Friday against Sinner. However, the 22-year-old has been in blistering form Down Under and has not lost a single set at the Australian Open, with McEnroe insisting that he needs to believe that he can win in order to claim a momentous victory.
“Novak is playing incredible tennis. The key for anyone to beat him, including Sinner, is do they deep down in the heart of hearts have the belief that they can beat Novak,” McEnroe told Eurosport.
“This is a mental game when you’re out there on your own. This is a physical game, yes, and you have your coach on the sidelines, but this is about believing and executing your game plan and thinking you can beat that one person on the other side of the court.
“That is one very tough thing as Djokovic is like a human backboard and knows how to manage himself when necessary, knows how to pace himself. He’s got everything. He’s got every trick in the book. And he’s got no weaknesses. It’s an incredibly tall order to beat him in a best-of-five-sets match. That’s why Djokovic can, and probably will win it again here.”
In November, Sinner defeated Djokovic in the ATP Finals group stage and at the Davis Cup Finals, which will give him confidence ahead of their semi-final meeting.
The Italian entered the Grand Slam as a career-high world No. 4 after winning trophies in Beijing and Vienna before leading Italy to Davis Cup glory, but McEnroe feels that a technical switch will also be required to keep Djokovic on his toes.
“I think Sinner is in the best position ever to do it. Obviously he’s worked hard on improving other aspects of his game,” McEnroe added. “Putting more on his serve, bringing his back foot up a little bit and getting more pop off it.
“Trying to be a little bit more unpredictable which he’ll need to do. He goes big off the ground and he will need to be willing to come to the net on some tight points. It will be interesting to see if he’s ready to do that yet.”
