Mumbai, Jan. 29 -- Maybe it was lady luck pulling some late strings for a man redefining longevity in elite individual sport. Maybe it was a sign of stars aligning for one its most glowing objects in tennis chasing a breakaway 25th galaxy. Or maybe, it was just divine intervention. Call it what you may, Novak Djokovic got fortunate on Wednesday. We aren't saying it, he is. "Just extremely lucky to get through this one," Djokovic said on court. "He was a far better player. I was on my way home tonight." Leading two sets to love being technically and tactically superior on the day, Lorenzo Musetti looked well on his way to the Australian Open semi-final. Until the 23-year-old Italian, playing with pain from a potential tear in his right leg through the second set that got worse in the third - as he revealed later - retired at 6-4, 6-3, 1-3. For a large part of the afternoon, the 38-year-old Serb appeared dazed from the Musetti magic while also battling blisters himself. And yet, Djokovic carried no delusions after it all came to an abrupt end. "He should have been a winner today, no doubt," he said. And yet, Djokovic is a semi-finalist, after having won zero sets in his fourth round - Jakub Mensik gave a walkover - and his quarter-final. "I'm gonna double my prayers tonight, for sure," he said. Well, whatever works. Everything has to certainly work in his game, body and mind if Djokovic has to cash in on this somewhat free ride at the next pitstop: a semi-final with Jannik Sinner. Ironically, Sinner too got lucky - we aren't saying it, he did - at Melbourne Park this year. Struggling to walk at a set and a break down in the third set of his fourth round with Eliot Spizzirri, a heat rule that came into effect just then paused play. That was all the world No.2 needed to keep running in this tournament. Sprinting past the big-serving Ben Shelton 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 with his trademark solid show in his quarter-final, the Italian hasn't looked back in riding his luck. Beyond those body-bruising shots on court, these little strokes of fortune (looking at you, Djokovic and Sinner) or misfortune (at you now, Musetti) can often define outcomes and champions in Grand Slams. Of all players still left standing Down Under, Djokovic knows it only too well. Luck, that moody companion, hasn't always been his friend. This is a 24-time Slam champion who has had his share of mid-tournament retirements, and who accidentally hit a line official with a ball to be disqualified from the 2020 US Open. He's also seen the fickleness of it within a span of four Slams from 2024 to 2025. At either end of Djokovic benefitting from a quarter-final walkover en route to his 2024 Wimbledon final march, came runs that met a sudden snap. After playing his part in delivering a dramatic five-setter, Djokovic had to withdraw from the 2024 French Open quarter-final due to a knee injury suffered in the previous outing. At last year's Australian Open, after looking every bit like the 10-time champion of Melbourne and beating Carlos Alcaraz in the quarter-final, Djokovic had to retire after the first set of the semi-final against Alexander Zverev with a leg injury. "I know exactly the feeling. And it's horrible, particularly when you're feeling like you're playing very well, like he (Musetti) was, and you can't perform the way you want to, and just the body is not letting you," said Djokovic. "It's a hard one to swallow, but that's the sport we are in." It's a tough sport, and it's not going to get any easier for its legend. A cramp-free Sinner awaits on Friday, and Djokovic is unsure whether he is under-cooked or fresh after playing just two sets across the previous two rounds. What he is sure of, though, is that he will need to dish out a much higher level than his quarter-final. "I think I underperformed," he said. Perhaps due to a combination tactical tweak and blisters, Djokovic set out to shorten rallies a lot more against Musetti. That's not his game, and, despite a promising start with it, took him nowhere but down two sets. Until, four games into the third set, luck handed Djokovic an unlikely passage to a Sinner showdown. Ironically, Sinner was two sets to love down at last year's Wimbledon fourth round when Grigor Dimitrov retired four games into the third set. Sinner went on to win the title. A sign, anyone?...