Novak Djokovic shared what Alex De Minaur told him at the net after surviving a tough test in Monte Carlo. The world No. 1 came through 7-5 6-4 to reach the semi-final for the first time in nine years. De Minaur was still in good spirits in defeat, making Djokovic laugh with a parting comment as they shook hands.

Djokovic was made to work against De Minaur on Friday as he came through a rollercoaster match that saw eight breaks of serve, six of them coming consecutively in the second set. The 36-year-old struggled at times, doubling over in exhaustion and making 26 unforced errors.

It wasn’t a pretty performance from De Minaur either as the world No. 11 made too many costly mistakes to give Djokovic some free games, including in the final games of both the first and second set. After a physical battle, both men were able to laugh at their questionable form as they shared a joke at the net.

Djokovic later admitted that his opponent told him it was an “ugly” contest, something he couldn’t help but agree with. “I mean, it was tough for both of us I guess,” the two-time Monte Carlo champion said after the match.

“He’s one of the quickest players on tour, he gets a lot of balls back that normally 99 per cent of the other players don’t. He did surprise me with several passing shots in the second set, particularly when I was up a break.”

After a few too many errors came off both of their rackets, Djokovic added: “He said in the net that it was ugly in the second set. I think it was. We didn’t play really at the high level, we made a lot of unforced errors him and I. A lot of consecutive breaks of serve which is kind of expected for clay but maybe not this many.”

After struggling through the match, Djokovic now finds himself in the semi-final for the first time since 2015 – the second time he lifted the trophy. Despite living in Monte Carlo and training at the country club which stages the tournament, he has struggled there in recent years.