Novak Djokovic outlasts Jannik Sinner, moves one win from historic 25th Grand Slam

Novak Djokovic is now one win away from clinching his 11th Australian Open title—and making tennis history—after taking down two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner in a thriller on Rod Laver Arena.

Djokovic had to dig deep over the course of five sets and more than four hours to prevail 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 against his generational rival. Along the way, he snapped five-match losing streak to the 24-year-old Italian that stretched back to 2023. That run included three Grand Slam semifinal defeats—at the 2024 Australian Open, 2025 Roland Garros and 2025 Wimbledon—making Friday night’s victory all the more significant.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion—who lost in the semifinals at all four majors last year—now has a chance to break his title tie with Australian legend Margaret Court. A 25th major would give Djokovic sole ownership of the all-time record for most Grand Slam singles titles in tennis history.

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Standing in his way is world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, setting up a blockbuster rematch of the 2024 Wimbledon final and the Paris Olympics gold-medal match. Alcaraz advanced earlier in the day after a marathon battle with No. 3 seed Alexander Zverev, edging through 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (4), 7-5 in nearly five and a half hours.

The 10-time Australian Open champion is no stranger to tough conditions in Melbourne, but at 38 even the greatest players feel the toll. Djokovic entered the match nursing foot blisters and was frequently seen hunched over between points.

“You always have some minor issues with your body, at least for me every single day. But major issues, no,” Djokovic had said before the match. “Thankfully, that’s still not posing a challenge or an obstacle for me to be able to play and move around the way I want to.”

Still, Djokovic was as fresh as he could reasonably be. He received a fourth-round walkover from Jakub Mensik and had been trailing Lorenzo Musetti by two sets when the Italian retired due to injury in the quarterfinals. As a result, Djokovic had not won a set at the Australian Open since the third round—until he became the first player of the tournament to take a set off Sinner in the semifinal.

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Djokovic has now won 17 of his last 18 four- and five-set matches at the Australian Open. His only loss in that span came against Sinner in the 2024 semifinals.

More to follow…