Novak Djokovic, then. he's not where he once was - he's not that close to it either - but surely he'll have more than enough for Marco Cecchinato? We're about to find out.

Right then, that's about us - join me again tomorrow for lots, lots more!

Cecchinato has two days off now and is looking forward to resting and recovering.

"Maybe I'm sleeping ... is amazing," he says. He can't stop laughing - "I play unbelievable match," he says, before laughing again. And well he might. Oh to know that happiness. "On the fifth matchpoint I was so tired but I won the match," he continues.

Cecchinato had never won a main draw match at a major before today, but how well he played. Excellent for two sets, rubbish for one and a half, wonderful for half plus a breaker. He meets Dominic Thiem in the semi-final, will collect 560,000 Euros, and the greatest moment of his professional life. Well in him.

Wow wow wow wow.

Djokovic goes long on the forehand, and that gives Cecchinato matchpoint number four ... this is incredible ... and Djokovic serves to the backhand, a loopy return goes over Djokovic ... AND IT LANDS IN! MARCO CECCHINATO HAS BEATEN NOVAK DJOKOVIC AND THAT WAS QUITE SIMPLY ONE OF THE MOST WONDROUS TIEBREAKS YOU WILL EVER SEE! HE THROWNS HIMSELF ONTO HIS BACK ON THE CLAY, GETS UP, EMBRACES DJOKOVIC, AND THAT WAS INCREDIBLE

Oh! Djokovic gets to 9-8, sets himself up for a winner, and somehow frames it! He is not pleased with himself. And he's double-punished when Cecchinato wrong-foots him for match point! Djokovic, though, plays a perfect point to redeem the situation, only to then open the court and clout a forehand into the top of the net! Another matchpoint for Cecchinato, this time on his own serve! But he can't take it, so round we go again!

ARE YOU KIDDING ME! Cecchinato dominates the next rally, but Djokovic keeps running, keeps making him play one more ball, and then a stop-volley gives him set-point! this is incredible! But he can't close out the set and we're at 7-7. Next, Cecchinato nets and Djokovic can serve for it ... but what a point Cecchinato plays, forcing him wide and then clearing up with a forehand, the 20th shot of the rally! This is wonderful, wonderful behaviour from both players!

Djokovic serves long ... then another violent rally ensues, this one dominated by Djokovic but then Cecchinato finds an angle to curve a topspin forehand down the line .... but Djokovic stretches and deflects a volley into space!

Hello! Cecchinato tries a loopy one, Djokovic waits to it to drop out and when it catches the line has to play it late ... too late. But it's quickly 5-5 and then, then, then WHAT A RALLY! Both men are knocking the cover off it, and finding clever angles too, until Cecchinato delivers two crushing forehands and Djokovic raises his arm in appreciation. IT's matchpoint!

And he does ... just! Djokovic breaks a string so charges the net and Cecchinato can't make him play, then goes for the line when there more room to spare and misses; thus does 3-0 become 3-3, and when Cecchinato opens an angle for himself, when the ball comes back low he doesn't change his shot, netting to cede a mini-break ... which is quickly equalised.

Oh gosh. Djokovic opens the court for his forehand, after Cecchinato does well to stick in the rally, and the ball goes wide - that's a mini-break. Cecchinato, incidentally, is 72 in the world but he doesn't look like it now, and wins both his serves for 3-0. Djokovic must win the next two points...

If Cecchinato performs like this in the tiebreaker and potential final set, we're in for a treat - previously, he lost five service games in a row but now he's punishing them. He holds to 15, and here we go!

The Cecchinato of the first two sets is back! His forehand is loose and earns him 0-15, then at 30-15 Djokovic goes long with a forehand and at 30-all goes wide with a backhand. He serves wide ... then short, and he's grunting with every stroke, this is a brute of a rally in which Cecchinato is in the ascendancy, but he nets a backhand! At deuce the players trade terrifying forehands, and Djokovic's crosscourt effort is the best of them, and that, followed by a serve and a backhand, mean that he leads 6-5! This is turning into a fine match now - previously, only one man was playing well at any one time, but no more.

Cecchinato holds and he is back and groooved; is Djokovic able to play well at the same time?

Cecchinato comes back from 30-0 to 30-all - he couldn't, could he? And Djokovic misses a half-court backhand! What has he become! And there it is! Cecchinato runs around his forehand to shmice a winner down the line! We're back on serve!

Cecchinato's kick serve, out to Djokovic's backhand, has been excellent for him today - a fact that will not have escaped the attention for Dominic Thiem, who awaits the winner of this match in the semi-final. He nabs a rare love game, in theory allowing him to go first in the decider.

A love hold for Djokovic and we'll soon be playing a decider. Oh yes.

Cecchinato is slowly finding his form again - we're in for a jazzer of a final set if both these leads are playing well at the same time, which hasn't happened in the match so far. As such, we get a long old game which Cecchinato eventually wins - Djokovic misses plenty of chances though, which remind you again how unlikely it is that he's ever getting back to where he was. In fact you know what, I'll say it: neither he nor Andy Murray are having another major.

Djokovic goes wide with a backhand and suddenly Cecchinato has 30-all while, in the meantime, it's starting to rain. Up go yon brollies, while Djokovic serves out; he'll hope to at least resolve this set before going off.