DAY 12 ACTION

NOT even Novak Djokovic can beat the passing of time.

- BY NEIL MCLEMAN

And the 38-year-old Serbian superstar admitted “it's just age” as he limped to a heavy semifinal defeat to Jannik Sinner to mark the end of an era at Wimbledon.

Djokovic had been seeking a seventh successive final here and a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam.

But he struggled with a groin injury against the world No.1 and he needed a mid-match medical timeout.

And Sinner, 23, took ruthless advantage to triumph 6-3 6-3 6-4 to set up a rematch of the epic French Open final with Carlos Alcaraz tomorrow.

It took only one hour and 55 minutes - Djokovic’s fastest ever Wimbledon defeat. Australian Open champion Sinner was just too quick, too strong and too young for him.

It was the kind of destruction that Djokovic used to wreak on his hapless opponents. Sinner won 81 percent of points on his first serve - and all 12 in the first set - and broke the Djokovic serve five times.

If it had been a boxing match, it would have been stopped.