Tennis never disappoints–or at least it doesn’t disappoint for long. Until today, the 2026 Australian Open had probably been the most disappointing and, frankly, dullest Major in a long time, with virtually no upsets or five-setters, and “Sincaraz” appearing nailed-on for a fourth successive Grand Slam Final to confirm their dominance over the rest of men’s tennis. Now, however, after two genuinely epic semifinals, the men’s singles final in Melbourne this year will undoubtedly be historic: either Carlos Alcaraz will become the youngest ever male winner of the Career Grand Slam; or Novak Djokovic will win a 25th Major title and become not just the male GOAT but the GOAT of all tennis.
AO26: How Dullest Slam Suddenly Became Historic Slam
A Pair of Epic Semifinals Sets Up a Grand Final
What made the two semifinals so incredible, indeed probably the finest pair of men’s semifinals at the Australian Open and possibly at any Major, was that both the eventual victors had looked likely to lose before somehow summoning up unbelievable inner strength to win. In the first semifinal, Alexander Zverev actually served for the match against Alcaraz, before the brilliant young Spaniard broke him to level the match at five games all in the fifth, and then for good measure broke him again at the next attempt to finally win the fifth set 7-5.
Similarly, in the second semifinal Djokovic was behind for virtually the entire match against Jannik Sinner before finally passing him at the last. Having broken Sinner midway through the fifth set, Djokovic then showed his typically superhuman resistance and powers of recovery to stave off three successive break-back points by Sinner when he was leading 5-3, and even defended a further breakback point in the final game, before finally closing out the match 6-4.
This was tennis of the absolute highest level, two back-to-back matches that reminded everyone, even lovers of the sport, that after a fairly dreary fortnight in Melbourne, it is always capable of achieving heights of competitiveness, athleticism and sheer tension that no other individual sport and arguably no other sport of any kind can match.
Alcaraz’s Extraordinary Comeback
This was the first Major tournament that Carlos Alcaraz had ever gone into without having Juan-Carlos Ferrero as his head coach. After their still-astonishing and still largely unexplained split at the end of last year, many had thought that it was bound to have a negative impact on Alcaraz and those feelings only grew when he began to struggle physically after going two sets up against Zverev.
After the match, Alcaraz admitted that he had initially thought he had suffered a serious injury, possibly to an abductor muscle, but it now appears to have been only severe cramp in the stifling Australian sun (the first semifinal taking place during the scorching heat of the day). From almost strolling to victory against Zverev, especially after he came from 5-2 down in the second set to win it on a tie-break, he was suddenly involved in a sporting life-or-death battle. And when Zverev broke him in the first game of the fifth set, it looked likely that he would lose that battle, especially when Zverev retained the lead in the fifth set until the ninth game.
Then, showing his characteristic combination of brilliance and grit, Alcaraz finally shook off the last effects of the cramp, broke Zverev back twice and set up his own tilt at history on Sunday.
Djokovic’s Even-More-Extraordinary Comeback
At the end of his semifinal against Sinner, Djokovic must have been tempted to channel his inner Vitas Gerulaitis and proclaim, “NOBODY beats Novak six times in a row!” In addition to reaching the Australian Open final and giving himself a chance of a hat-trick of titles in Melbourne, that was the tantalizing prize on offer to Sinner, having dominated all his matches over Djokovic since he had beaten him twice in one day (in singles and doubles) in the Davis Cup semifinal in 2023.
For long stretches of the match, and especially when Djokovic seemed to be suffering a succession of physical problems midway through it, it seemed certain that the 24-year-old Italian and defending champion would triumph against the man who is nearly 15 years older than him. But on the one court in the world where Djokovic has always been hailed as loudly and vigorously as the two other members of The Big Three (largely because of the significant Serbian-Australian community in Australia), his every winner was wildly celebrated and that support undoubtedly helped him to finally emerge as the winner.
A Truly Historic Showdown
And so the scene is set for a truly historic men’s final on Sunday. Either Carlos Alcaraz will become the youngest ever male winner of the Career Slam (winning all four Majors throughout a career), beating the record of the U.S.A.’s Don Budge that has stood for nearly a century, or Novak Djokovic will break his current tie with Australia’s own Margaret Court on 24 Major Singles titles and prove beyond doubt that he is the greatest tennis player, of either gender, of all time.
It is an utterly enticing prospect and one that would have seemed inconceivable before the semifinals, especially after Djokovic somehow escaped what looked like certain defeat in the quarterfinal before Lorenzo Musetti had to retire injured.
Now the 2026 Australian Open looks set to join the select group of Grand Slam tournaments that will always be remembered for the history that was made at them, such as Wimbledon in 1980 and 2008, the Australian Open in 2012 and the French Open last year. Of course, given the physical difficulties that both men experienced during their semifinals, it is still possible that one of them could default before the final or be unable to compete at their best in it. However, even if that proves to be the case, the outcome will still be historic. And the sporting world–not just the tennis world–will be watching to see history being made, one way or the other.
Main Photo Credit: Mike Frey-Imagn Images
