History as well as the Australian Open title will be on the line when Carlos Alcaraz battles Novak Djokovic in the final on Sunday.
Victory for Alcaraz would make him the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam of all four major titles, while Djokovic can achieve a long-sought-after goal of becoming the first player ever to win a 25th slam trophy.
At 38, Djokovic is the oldest man in the open era to reach the final in Melbourne and, were he to win, he would surpass Ken Rosewall as the oldest slam champion in men’s singles.
That seemed a fanciful prospect when he trailed Lorenzo Musetti by two sets to love in the quarter-finals, only for the Italian to be forced out with a thigh injury.
And Djokovic seized his second chance in remarkable fashion, ending the winning run in Melbourne of two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner over five intense and high-quality sets.
“I never stopped doubting,” said the Serbian as he spoke to the media in the bowels of Rod Laver Arena at nearly 3am.
“I never stopped believing in myself. There’s a lot of people that doubt me. I see there is a lot of experts all of a sudden that wanted to retire me or have retired me many times the last couple of years.
“I want to thank them all because they gave me strength. They gave me motivation to prove them wrong.”
Among all Djokovic’s incredible achievements, this was right up there among the best of them, and, if he can beat Alcaraz, it will be one of the most remarkable sporting stories of all time.
“History is on the line for both of us every time we play,” added Djokovic, who has won all of his 10 previous finals at Melbourne Park.
“The finals of a grand slam, there’s a lot at stake, but it’s no different from any other big match that I play. My preparation is as it should be, and I won against him last year here, also in a gruelling match.
“Let’s see how fresh are we both able to be. He also had a big match, but he has 15, 16 years on me. Biologically I think it’s going to be a bit easier for him to recover.
“But I look forward to it. I play tennis competitively mainly to be able to reach the finals of grand slams. Here I am, so I cannot complain about anything.”
Alcaraz, who needed five hours and 27 minutes to get past Alexander Zverev in the last four, was four years old when Djokovic first reached the final here in 2008 and the clash of the generations adds an extra element to Sunday’s match.
Djokovic has won five of their nine previous meetings, including their last final at the Olympics in 2024, but Alcaraz won both their slam finals at Wimbledon in 2023 and 2024.
A very interested spectator will be Rafael Nadal, who is back at the Australian Open for the first time since his retirement just over a year ago.
He is not surprised to see Djokovic still battling away, saying: “When you like to do this thing, if you are not injured and if you are not super tired mentally, why wouldn’t you be here?
“I think it’s a positive example of commitment, of resilience. Novak, for obvious reasons, he’s not at his prime, but he is still very, very competitive at an age that is difficult to be very competitive. So, full respect.”
Nadal admitted he cannot root for his old rival against his Spanish heir, though, adding: “If Novak wins, I will be happy for him because it is spectacular what he’s doing at this stage of his career.
“So I will be happy. But, if I have to support someone, I feel I have to support Carlos.”
