Serbian legend Novak Djokovic has a shot at breaking the tie with Margaret Court to own tennis' ultimate Majors record, while the 21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz is also three wins from breaking an all-time record
Novak Djokovic takes on Carlos Alcaraz for a place in the semi-finals of the Australian Open 2025, men's singles event on Tuesday, January 21. Scheduled for a 3:00 PM IST (9:30 AM local) start, this high-profile match will be played at Rod Laver Arena, Melbourne Park. (Full Coverage | More Tennis News)
Both are aiming to make history at the season-opening Grand Slam in Australia. Djokovic, 37, is three wins away from winning a 25th Major title and in Melbourne, he can break the tie with Aussie great Margaret Court to own tennis' ultimate record, one that's unlikely to be broken, let alone challenged.
Alcaraz is also three wins from breaking an all-time record. Should he lift the trophy this Sunday, the 21-year-old will become the youngest male player to complete the career Slam -- winning all four Majors at least once. His Spanish compatriot Rafael Nadal, having achieved the feat at 24 in 2010, currently holds the record.
Of course, there are many more talking points but none bigger than the quest to win a Grand Slam. Record 10-time champion Djokovic is looking to win his 13th Australian Open quarter-final while Alcaraz's best run has been a last-eight appearance last year, which ended in defeat to Alexander Zverev.
This will be their first meeting at the Australian Open. The Serbian great enjoys a 4-3 lead over the world number 3 in the head-to-head record, including 2-1 on clay, and 2-0 on hardcourts, but trails 0-2 on grass. The pair last met at the Paris Olympic Games 2024.
Seeded seventh here, Novak Djokovic dropped a set each against wild card Nishesh Basavareddy and qualifier Jaime Faria, but was imperious in straight-set wins over 26th seed Tomas Machac, and 24th seed Jiri Lehecka.
Alcaraz, who is gunning for a fifth Grand Slam title, hardly broke into a sweat as he faced three unseeded players en route to the round of 16. He didn't drop a set against Alexander Shevchenko and Yoshihito Nishioka, but needed a fourth set after a third-set tie-breaker to beat Nuno Borges. In the fourth round, 15th seed Jack Draper retired after losing the first two sets.
The winner will take on either Tommy Paul or Alexander Zverev. The two previous Australian Open semi-finalists take the court early Tuesday morning.
The high-voltage clash between Alcaraz and Djokovic will be telecast live on the Sony Sports Network TV channels in India. It will be live streamed on the Sony Liv app and website in the country.