Jannik Sinner destroyed injured Novak Djokovic on Centre Court to set up a re-match of the epic French Open final against Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday.

And the Italian’s fifth consecutive win over the Serbian superstar ends his run of six straight Wimbledon finals to bring an end of an era at SW19.

As an underdog, Djokovic was given huge support by the Centre Court crowd - in what was a surprising first - and he was granted a standing ovation as he left the arena at the end of the one-sided contest.

He had been seeking his eight Wimbledon title and a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam at the age of 38.

But he struggled with the groin injury he exacerbated by his slip at the end of his quarter-final win and took a mid-match timeout. He looked slow and flat from the start and he was limping by the end after a brief revival in the third set. And Sinner, 23, took ruthless advantage to triumph 6-3 6-3 6-4 to reach his first Wimbledon final.

It took only one hour and 55 minutes - his fastest ever Wimbledon defeat. Sinner was too quick, too strong and too young for him

On clay last month, the epic five-set French Open final between Sinner and Alcaraz lasted five hours and 29 minutes.

It means that the Italian world No.1 and defending champion Alcaraz are guaranteed to win a seventh consecutive Grand Slam title between them.

Djokovic, who last lost a Wimbledon semi-final to Roger Federer in 2012, won his 24th Major at the 2023 US Open. He had come closest to winning his 25th by reaching the last two Wimbledon finals before losing to Alcaraz.

But the Olympic champion has now lost two consecutive Grand Slam semi-finals to the Italian in Paris and London.

Before this 20th Wimbledon, he admitted this tournament was his best chance to win a 25th and he does not have many more. And his body is showing the wear and tear of years on tour and his withdrawal from last year’s French Open and this January’s Australian Open before limping out today.

Winning 24 Grand Slams is an amazing achievement. But there could have been more. He was disqualified from the 2020 US Open for hitting a line judge with a ball and was then deported before the 2022 Australian Open after arriving Down Under without a Covid vaccine.

His refusal to take the jab also saw him miss the US Open that year. He returned in 2023 to win three Majors out of four.

The first set lasted only 33 minutes when Sinner took his third set point when Djokovic sailed a backhand long. The Serb looked simply shellshocked by the power hitting of the younger man.

He raced into a 3-0 lead in the second set before he finally got onto the scoreboard when a vintage forehand crosscourt winner kissed the sideline. The hold saw huge cheers and support for the underdog.

Djokovic tried to vary his tactics - he sliced, he chipped and charged, he used drop shots and served-and-volleyed - but nothing worked.

Sinner blazed a sensational backhand pass down the line to set up his first two set points at 2-5 before Djokovic held on.

But Sinner then took his third set point with an ace after 69 minutes. AThe 24-time Grand Slam winner then called a medical timeout for treatment on his left groin. The stoppage saw Djokovic come out playing better and Sinner was worse.

The No.6 seed earned and took his first break point of the match in the second game when Sinner’s forehand hit the net. In his next service game, the Australian Open champion had to save a point to go a double break and 0-4 down.

But the Italian held and then broke back in the following game when Djokovic sent down a 122mph second serve on the first break point but then dumped his backhand drop shot into the net.

Djokovic lost five consecutive games but saved two match points serving at 3-5 before Sinner took his fourth match point in the next game with a forehand winner.