Never before had Novak Djokovic been such an underdog in such a significant match. His mere presence in the Australian Open semi-finals, after all, had been the result of a significant slice of good fortune. As he faced off against one of the dominant players in his sport, for many a competitive match would be close enough to a win.
This special champion has achieved so much for so long, but in the early hours of Saturday morning the 38-year-old pulled off one of the greatest upsets of his remarkable career, recovering from a two-sets-to-one deficit to topple Jannik Sinner, the two-time defending champion and second seed, 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 to return improbably to the Australian Open final.
No tennis player in the history of this sport has come even close to achieving the longevity that Djokovic commands. As he chases a record 25th grand slam singles title – he already has two more than any other male player – he has become the oldest man in the open era to reach the Australian Open final. Djokovic has reached his 11th Melbourne final, a men’s record, and 38th grand slam final, the most overall.
His victory rounded off one of the great Australian Open semi-final days as, after so many uneventful, routine sessions, the tournament finally came alive with consecutive epic five-set tussles. Djokovic will rekindle his rivalry with Carlos Alcaraz in the final, with the Serb aiming to become the oldest men’s grand slam champion in history while the Spaniard tries, at 22, to become the youngest man in history to complete the career grand slam.
Confidence in Djokovic before the match was low for good reason. On Wednesday, he had been completely outplayed for two sets by Lorenzo Musetti, the fifth seed, before the Italian was forced to retire. This had been preceded by a withdrawal from the 16th seed, Jakub Mensik, in round four, meaning Djokovic had not even won a set since the third round.
Things did not look hopeful in the early exchanges as he conceded his first service game with two sloppy errors and the first set vanished in a flash. As the match endured, however, the world No 4 gradually began to settle down and, once he found his range, he played at an extremely high level. Djokovic relentlessly attacked his forehand, snatching the first strike from Sinner as much as he could. He refused to move from his position on top of the baseline, taking the ball early and effortlessly redirecting the ball off both wings. He also served well in tight moments, finding precise first serves to keep Sinner at arms’ length
The scoreline gradually began to reflect Djokovic’s form. He took an early break in set two for 3-1, which he consolidated throughout the set thanks to some brilliant serving in tight moments. By the time he had levelled the match at one set all, however, Djokovic was clearly struggling physically. Not only has he played very few matches since the US Open last year, the intensity demanded by Sinner on every point is immense, particularly for his 38-year-old body.
Across the net, this was a strong serving performance from Sinner, who finished with 26 aces, by far the most he has ever served in a match. While Djokovic struggled physically throughout the third set, Sinner marched through his service games and reimposed himself on top of the baseline. At 5-4 to the Italian, the scoreboard pressure weighed heavily on Djokovic’s shoulders and a few sloppy errors from the Serb were enough for him to relinquish the third set.
When Sinner established a two-sets-to-one lead, it seemed reasonable to assume he would tighten his grip. Instead, Djokovic broke in the opening game of the set, continuing to force himself inside the baseline to take the first strike. With the break secured, Djokovic served so well throughout the fourth set that he shut Sinner out of his service games and pulled an increasingly delirious Rod Laver Arena crowd into another fifth set.
Three and a half hours into the contest, Djokovic let his instinct and determination guide him. He faced five break points early in the fifth set, saving each one with some of his most outlandish shotmaking of the tournament. Once he finally had an opportunity of his own, there was no chance that he would let it pass him by as he powered through to another historic achievement in an unparalleled career filled with them.
