Carlos Alcaraz has always had to battle in his matches against [3] Alexander Zverev. They were tied 6:6 heading into this semifinal match. Alcaraz won their last encounter in the semifinal of the Cincinnati Masters 100 ATP tournament in an easy straight sets victory. Well, it was not an easy victory last night for the Spaniard. Zverev pushed him hard in a battle that lasted five hours and twenty-seven minutes. What makes it painful for Zverev is twofold: it was a grueling match, and he had his chances to win. This one will probably sting for the German. When you battle so hard only to come out on the losing end, it hurts on every level. I really feel for the German; however, we know, there can only be one winner.

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Nice Fightback For Carlos Alcaraz

Alcaraz won 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-7(4), 6-7(4), 7-5. They traded breaks in the second set; however, there were no breaks in the third and fourth sets. In the fifth set, the Spaniard broke twice and finally got the victory. The question for the Spaniard is, “What will he have left to face Novak Djokovic?” [1] Carlos Alcaraz trails in their H2H, with the Serbian leading 5:4. The only comfort that Alcaraz can take is his recent victory at the 2025 US Open in the semifinal, where he defeated the Serbian in straight sets. The bad news for the Spaniard is that Djokovic defeated him at the Australian Open at the quarterfinal stage in 2025 and he might be injured. The good news, they are tied 2:2 in finals.

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Novak Djokovic Is Determined To Win Another AO Title

This was a monumental effort for [4] Novak Djokovic. Keep in mind that [2] Jannik Sinner led their H2H 6:4 going into this semifinal encounter. Worse for the Italian, he had won the last five consecutive matches against the Serbian. That should give you an indication of how good Djokovic is at the Australian Open, and more important, how determined he is to win another major.

Jannik Sinner Squandered His Opportunities

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Sinner had the upper hand leading two sets to one, but that did not deter the Serbian. Djokovic came roaring back in the last two sets to upset the number two seed. The Serbian won 3-6, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4, 6-4. Their match lasted four hours and nine minutes. Sinner squandered two break chances in the fourth set and failed on eight opportunities in the fifth set to break his opponent. If you can’t break back, then that simply means you will lose the match and that is exactly what happened. This sets up an intriguing Australian Open final. Who will win this one?

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