MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. — Wind gusts of 27 mph swirled across center court at Hard Rock Stadium Friday afternoon and Inter Miami star Lionel Messi watched from the stands as 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic breezed past Grigor Dimitrov 6-2, 6-3 in an hour and 10 minutes to reach the Miami Open men’s final.

At 37 years and 10 months old, Djokovic becomes the oldest men’s finalist in a Masters 1000 event. If he wins on Sunday, it will be his seventh title at the Miami Open, breaking the record he co-holds with Andre Agassi. He improved to 21-1 in Miami.

“It is special playing in Miami because I had not been here in six years and this is one of the best cities in the world,” Djokovic said. “It was a huge honor to have King Leo [Messi] in the stands. It was the first time I’ve played in front of him. We are the same age.”

Djokovic turns 38 on May 22, Messi on June 24. The two legends met in the locker room after the match, exchanged gifts and Djokovic got to meet Messi’s wife and sons.

“[Messi] is such a great athlete, not just a football player, his impact on the world of sport the last 20 years has been immense, and so to have him watch me live brings me great, great joy and excitement, and also a little bit of pressure,” Djokovic said, smiling.

He said one of Messi’s sons rated him “eight out of 10,” and jokingly said he aims to do better on Sunday.

“It was nice to meet his whole family, a very touching moment for me,” he said. “It’s one thing that he comes, but bringing his whole family ... as a young father myself, I know what that means. It was a wonderful moment for me and this tournament and tennis in general for him to be here.”

The match between Djokovic and 33-year-old Dimitrov was the oldest semifinal in ATP Masters 1000 history and result was hardly a surprise, as Djokovic had won 12 of his previous 13 matches against Dimitrov.

It was not easy playing through the wind, but Djokovic relied on his trusty serve.

“My serve was definitely the highlight of the match,” Djokovic said. “I think it was 83 percent last match, and I thought that probably will be difficult to beat that, but today it was 87 percent. I’ve been serving very well and hopefully I can continue in the same fashion in the final because that definitely makes my life easier on the court.”

Djokovic will play the winner of Friday’s night semifinal between No. 3 seed Taylor Fritz of the United States and 19-year-old Jakub Mensik of the Czech Republic.

The women’s final is Saturday at 3 p.m. between top seed Aryna Sabalenka, who lives in Miami, and No. 4 Jessica Pegula, who lives in Boca Raton and who is quite familiar with Hard Rock Stadium because her parents, Terry Pegula and Kim Pegula, own the Buffalo Bills and they have watched many games there against the Dolphins.

Djokovic will be extra motivated on Sunday because another milestone is at stake. He is going for his 100th career title.

“After the Olympics, which was my 99th title, I knew that every tournament I play I am going for 100 and wasn’t able to achieve that until hopefully Sunday,” he said. “I’m going to go all in. I haven’t dropped a set. I’m playing really good tennis, as good as I’ve played in a long time.”

Dimitrov was coming off a grueling 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-6 (3) quarterfinal victory over Francisco Cerundolo during which he fell behind 3-0 in the final set and saved a match point. The match lasted two hours and 48 minutes, and when it finally ended, the Bulgarian gasped for air and asked for medical assistance. Medics checked his blood pressure and escorted him off the court.

“I don’t remember too much about the first 15, 20 minutes after I came off the court, I just remember the wheelchair,” Dimitrov said on Friday after the loss to Djokovic. “After, I honestly don’t have a recollection of what happened. I was chugging water, they were stuffing ice all over me and I cooled off.”

He said he pushed himself especially hard in that match because a semifinal was on the line and it meant so much to him at this stage of his career.

“The other night was one of those matches where you would have to carry me out of the court somehow, I threw everything I had out there,” he said. “Moments like that, you just need to find a way around it. Prior to the match I wasn’t feeling well. I was not feeling well during the match. I was digging deeper and deeper, and when nothing is working, you have a heart and a head. That’s what I had.”

But against a champion like Djokovic, heart and head were not enough. The Serb handled the wind much better and his serve was nearly perfect.

Dimitrov was asked how playing Djokovic is different now than it was when he was 30.

“He’s got a little more freedom right now, and I would have, too, if I’d have done what he has done, he has that bit more confidence,” Dimitrov said. “It’s almost like there’s a stain that you cannot wipe off. It’s, honestly, a beautiful thing to see. There are only a very few athletes on earth who have that, and he’s clearly one of those athletes.”

Another was the Argentine soccer legend sitting in the audience.

“When I see guys like that playing up until later stages, and they just create amazing, amazing things, it’s inspiring,” he said.

Marcelo Arevalo of El Salvador in doubles final

Marcelo Arevalo, the world No. 1 doubles player from El Salvador, and Mate Pavic of Croatia are in the final Saturday after extending their winning streak to nine by rallying to beat fifth seeds Nikola Mektic and Michael Venus 2-6, 7-6 (4), 10-5.

Arevalo, 34, is the most accomplished Salvadoran tennis player in history, male or female, and lives in Plantation. He has won 14 career ATP Tour doubles titles, including two Grand Slam titles at the 2022 French Open with partner Jean-Julian Rojer, and in 2024with Pavic. He is the first player from Central America to claim a men’s doubles major title.

He is the younger brother of former tennis player Rafael Arevalo, with whom he partnered with for Davis Cup. He attended the University of Tulsa, where he played two years and was an all-conference selection.

He and Pavic will try to complete the ‘Sunshine Double’, having won a in Indian Wells, Calif., a few weeks ago. Arevalo and Pavic did not drop a set all tournament in that tournament.

The Salvadoran-Croatian pair have a 17-5 record this season and will face sixth seeds Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool of Great Britain in the championship match.

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