Wimbledon 2021: 3 talking points from Novak Djokovic's SF win over Denis Shapovalov

Novak Djokovic forged his way through to the final of Wimbledon 2021 with a 7-6(3), 7-5, 7-5 win over Denis Shapovalov on Friday.

The coming Sunday will mark Djokovic's seventh appearance in the championship match at SW19, and his opponent this time will be Italy's Matteo Berrettini. The Serb is vying for the third consecutive Grand Slam title of the year, and 20th overall. If he does beat Berrettini on Sunday, Djokovic will tie Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal's all-time record for most Slams.

#Wimbledon title No.6 is in reach.Defending champion @DjokerNole is into his seventh final at The Championships with a straight sets victory over Denis Shapovalov pic.twitter.com/QpyX7Ho0eZ

— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 9, 2021

On that note, here's a look at three key takeaways from Djokovic's straight-sets win over Shapovalov:

#1 Denis Shapovalov was the better player for most of the first 2 sets, but stumbled on the big points

Denis Shapovalov

Despite what the scoreline suggests, Denis Shapovalov was the better player for much of the opening two sets. The Canadian came flying out of the blocks in the first set, taking an early break and eventually serving for it at 5-4. But a series of unforced errors - with one particularly shocking one coming at 30-30 despite Shapovalov having the whole court to aim at - allowed Djokovic to draw level.

The 22-year-old had a solid start to the second set as well, forging multiple break point opportunities early on. But Djokovic dug deep and served well to weather the storm.

#2 Novak Djokovic was absolutely clutch on serve

A lot has been made of Novak Djokovic's serve at Wimbledon this year, with his first serve often digging him out of difficult moments. There was more of the same on Friday from the Serb, who won 81% of his first-serve points.

Djokovic's groundstrokes weren't at their sharpest during the match, as Shapovalov outplayed him in many of the baseline exchanges. But the World No. 1 smacked eight aces and was able to save 10 out of the 11 break points he faced, showing once again that he is one of the best clutch servers in history.

#3 Novak Djokovic's mindset won the day yet again

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic may have made his way through to the final in straight sets, but the Serb was far from his best during the semifinal. The 34-year-old often struggled to generate enough depth from the baseline, and he got outhit by his younger opponent at various stages of the match.

However, Djokovic did what he always does when he has an off day. The Serb dug in his heels and exploited each and every mistake that Shapovalov made, while also forcing the Canadian to go for more by getting a lot of balls back in play.

Djokovic was far steadier and steelier than his opponent when it mattered the most, and that was enough to seal a straight-sets win.

Make that 7️⃣ Wimbledon finals for @DjokerNole 🙌The top seed moves past Shapovalov 7-6(3), 7-5, 7-5. #Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/1LaxTRBzZO

— ATP Tour (@atptour) July 9, 2021

Novak Djokovic will now take on the similarly big-hitting Matteo Berrettini in the final. But if Friday's result is anything to go by, the Serb won't have much trouble getting Berrettini out of his comfort zone and eliciting a heap of errors in the process.