Novak Djokovic has finally managed to beat one of the two men who were blocking his path to a 25th Grand Slam singles title, by defeating Jannik Sinner in five sets this Friday, to reach the final of the Australian Open.
To clinch that coveted 25th title, he must now overcome another obstacle: world number one Carlos Alcaraz. Both players are aiming to make history on Sunday for the title. The 22-year-old Spaniard, Alcaraz, is attempting to become the youngest man to achieve a career Grand Slam.
Alcaraz wins a marathon semi-final
The world number one also had to fight an exhausting five-set battle. He eliminated world number three Alexander Zverev 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (4), 7-5 in a match that began Friday afternoon and, 5 hours and 27 minutes later, became the longest semi-final in Australian Open history. This encounter delayed the start of Djokovic's match against Sinner by a few hours. The 38-year-old Serb finally closed out his victory 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 just after 1:30 a.m.
"It's unreal."
"It's unreal."“Honestly, it feels like I’ve already won tonight,” Djokovic said of the 4-hour, 9-minute triumph. “I know I have to come back… and face the world number one. I just hope I have enough energy to stay at this level. That’s my wish. Let God decide the winner.”
Djokovic was at the peak of his defensive abilities, saving 16 of the 18 break points he faced against the two-time defending champion. This victory ends a run of five losses to Sinner and four semifinal exits for Djokovic at Grand Slam tournaments.
"I had many opportunities and I didn't know how to use them, that's the result." Sinner acknowledged. "Yes, it hurts, that's for sure."
A rivalry between Alcaraz and Sinner
Since Djokovic won his last title at the 2023 US Open, Alcaraz and Sinner have shared the next eight Grand Slam titles. No one knows Melbourne Park better than Djokovic: he has won all ten Australian Open finals he has entered.
After the first semi-final, Djokovic saw Alcaraz and congratulated him on his first final at Melbourne Park. "He apologized for the delay." Djokovic explained later. "I told him, 'I'm an old man, I need to go to bed earlier!'"
Djokovic, who aims to become the oldest man in the Open Era to win a Grand Slam title, therefore finished his semi-final very late. "I'm looking forward to meeting him on Sunday," did he declare.
Historic semi-finals
With all four top seeds reaching the men's semi-finals for only the fifth time, Day 13 promised to be a day of high suspense. The tournament had been relatively uneventful until then, before these two consecutive five-set matches, which together lasted 9 hours and 36 minutes.
Alcaraz and Zverev, finalist in 2025, surpassed the 2009 classic between Rafael Nadal and Fernando Verdasco as the longest semi-final in Australian Open history.
Alcaraz overcomes the pain
Alcaraz was two points away from victory in the third set, but he was hampered by a pain in his right thigh. His request for medical time sparked controversy. He explained that it wasn't a typical cramp, but a localized pain in a specific muscle, the right adductor, requiring evaluation.
Despite this, he survived the third and fourth sets and even trailed in the fifth after losing his serve in the first game. He maintained the pressure and only managed to break when Zverev was serving for the match, then won the last four games.
"I think we pushed ourselves to the limit physically today. We put our bodies to the test." Alcaraz stated. "I'm really happy to have won and to be back. I rank this match among the best I've ever won."
Alcaraz's mental strength
When asked about his ability to bounce back despite the near defeat, Alcaraz admitted that he had suffered, but that he continued to "Believe, believe, all the time."
"I've been in these kinds of situations and matches before, so I knew what I had to do.", he added. "I had to put my heart into the game. I think I did. I fought until the very last point."
Zverev, visibly upset by the medical time taken by his opponent in the third set, discussed it with a tournament supervisor, but he clarified after the match that he did not want this controversy to overshadow the quality of the match.
"I don't want to talk about it now, because it's one of the best battles ever seen in Australia.""This match doesn't deserve to be a topic of discussion," he said.
