The rivalry between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz is now the greatest show in tennis and fans of the sport must be pinching themselves that the legend has hung around long enough to engage in another great conquest against a champion.

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The 10-time Australian Open champion’s 4-6 6-4 6-3 6-4 triumph over Carlos Alcaraz in the early hours of Wednesday morning was one of his finest performances in a glittering career full of dozens of incredible moments for a litany of reasons.

From the injury scare in the first set to the breathtaking quality of his ball striking, from his bravery in taking the fight to the Spanish sensation to the drama that unfolded late in the match, it was an incredible performance given Djokovic’s age and Alcaraz’s reputation.

“(It was the) best match of the tournament for me and possibly one of the best matches that was played on the men’s side. (I am) just super proud to push this one through in the four set,” Djokovic said.

“Carlos brings so much energy and intensity on the court. He always demands the best of his opponent in order to … have a chance to win against him. I knew that coming into the match. I thought I started off very well. It was quite even match.

“Every set was super close. The crowd was into it. (There was) so much energy on the court. It was amazing. It felt like it was finals of a slam. To be honest, I wish it was.”

Bout VIII of their rivalry was not the best though and is not even on the podium, which is saying something, because Melbourne Park was rocking as the powerhouses engaged in scintillating rallies while battling nerves in a quarterfinal with historic ramifications.

That honour is owned either by their five-set epic in the 2023 Wimbledon final clinched by Alcaraz, or the final of the Cincinnati Masters a month later won by Djokovic in a third set tiebreaker, though the Paris Olympics decider deserves a mention its meaning for Novak.

But it was a ripper with twists and turns and one that kept fans on the edge of their seats at Melbourne Park until the early hours on Wednesday. Djokovic’s ability to pressure Alcaraz’s second serve, while serving brilliantly himself, ultimately proved the difference.

“Credit to him for fighting. I think we both gave all on the court tonight. Hopefully people saw that,” Djokovic said.

Over the past two decades we have had battles between Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. They were must watch battles. Now we have another. It is unlikely to be as enduring given the disparity in age, with Djokovic at 37 some 16 years older than his rival.

But it is riveting and one the tennis world will celebrate for as long as the two champions are able to trade blows from the baseline, with Alcaraz proud to be a part of it.

“Every time that we play against each other, I think it’s guaranteed (to be great),” he said.

“I mean, we push us to the limit, each other. I think we’ve played great points, great rallies. It was really tight the third, the fourth set. I mean, the whole match, I guess.

“I’m just lucky to live this experience. I’m 21 years old. From these matches, I’m getting so much experience about how to deal with everything.

“I’m not going to hide. I’ve done great things in tennis already, but playing against one of the best in history of our sport, these kind of matches (will) help me a lot in the future to be better.

“I’m just happy to be able to live this experience. For me, it’s great hearing those words from someone who played historic matches, historic things. So I’m leaving here Australia with the head up. I’m really happy about hearing those words from Novak.”

SINNER WEAPON THAT ‘HITS DIFFERENT’

A couple of years ago, the Australian Open devised a marketing campaign around the tagline that tennis “hits different” for the grand slam that is the country’s biggest event.

According to those who have faced Jannik Sinner at his peak, it is the perfect description of the world No.1 and the man Alex de Minaur faces in a quarterfinal on Wednesday night.

It is now four months since de Minaur’s compatriot Chris O’Connell faced Jannik Sinner on the world’s biggest tennis court by capacity, Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York.

The Australian entered their third round clash a rank outsider but in good form after two solid four set wins at the US Open to set up a centre court clash with the Italian superstar.

The 30-year-old played well. But he was outclassed 6-1 6-4 6-2 in comprehensive fashion by the preeminent hard court player in the world.

As he assessed the defeat in a chat afterwards at Flushing Meadows, O’Connell said he had never experienced the like on the tennis court, with one factor in particular standing out.

Sinner had the unique quality, at least in the assessment of the Australian No.70, of returning shots under immense pressure in a rally with a venom that seemed impossible.

“The biggest thing for me is putting a ball into the open court which I feel I would get a weaker reply against some of these other players, it comes back way bigger,” he said.

“He is so good out wide. I couldn’t believe how strong (he is), some of the shots he hit from out wide. That was the thing that really struck me.

“It is not when he is set. Yes, it is heavy (when he hits it) but the amount of racquet head speed and power he can get from out wide is incredible. He is a very good mover. Just a great mover. He has got a slim frame and he is tall, but he is strong.”

If there is such a thing as the “Alcaraz effect”, the “Sinner sensation” is a phenomenon that must be recognised as well, for the defending AO champion creates his own sound effects.

When it comes to the forehand speed of Sinner, who recorded the first of his nine triumphs over de Minaur in the decider of the Next Gen Finals in 2019, not much has changed.

From that wing, he has always been ahead of the curve, with his forehand speed about 8km/h quicker than the tour average from his early outings in professional tennis.

As he has gotten stronger, he has increased the revolutions he gets from the forehand wing, which has made it an even more potent weapon. His frame and movement assist there.

And there is the sound of the shot. The thwack. The big stadium courts like Rod Laver Arena seemed to enhance the noise that stems from Sinner smacking his forehand.

Darren Cahill, who joined the Sinner camp in late 2022 and has seen him blossom into becoming the fourth world No.1 he has coached, described the weapon last January after the Italian broke through for a maiden major triumph in Melbourne.

“The sound of the ball when he hits it, it’s pretty amazing, isn’t it?” Cahill said.

“Agassi hits the ball like that. When he hits the ball, it sounds like it’s hit harder than everybody else. Rafa (Nadal) was exactly the same. Roger (Federer), when he hit a forehand, you could just hear the sound of it. And Novak (Djokovic), when he hits a forehand and backhand, it’s like a thud. It’s not just a normal person striking the ball.

“All those players have a different sound when they hit the ball and Jannik certainly has that as well.”

American James Blake, who ripped his forehand and is in Australia commentating on the Open, told ESPN at the US Open last September and said there is a reason Sinner’s forehand sings.

“It’s a huge forehand. It’s one of the biggest forehands in the game right now,” he said.

“But I think part of the sound difference is he’s one of the few guys now – a man after my own heart – who strings his racquet real tight.

“And obviously he swings so hard that it just has that different sound and he hits the ball clean the whole time. In terms of the actual results, it’s just a huge shot.”

And it is just one element of the Sinner arsenal that de Minaur must neutralise if he is to become the first Australian man since Lleyton Hewitt in 2005 to progress to the semifinals of their home grand slam.

SERVING UP A SINNER STRATEGY

As de Minaur was assessing his prospects against Sinner, he acknowledged his serve needs to improve sharply if he is to have a chance of securing a massive upset.

Back to O’Connell, who warned of what Sinner will do against a rival whose serve is not at its best.

“I didn’t have the best serving day. I didn’t really hit my spots,” O’Connell said.

“When I’m not hitting my spots, it’s just an accumulation of pressure … and then every single shot, once I got in the rally, every single shot I just felt like I had to do something with it, because he was just one me. He was suffocating me.”

The quality of the nine-time ATP Tour title holder’s serve has tailed off the further he has progressed in reaching the last eight for the first time at the Australian Open.

In his first round against Botic van de Zandschulp, who upset Carlos Alcaraz in the US Open last year, he landed his first serve 63 percent of the time and won 81 percent of the points.

The first serve percentage dipped to 53 in his straight sets win over Tristan Boyer in the second round, though he won 88 percent of those points.

When struggling against Francisco Cerundolo, his first serve rate dipped below 50 percent and he won only 70 percent of those points in an indication of how hard he had to battle.

Against American Alex Michelsen, he managed to land only four in ten of his first serves. The Australian star has lifted his pace notably on his serve and clipped one at 215km/h against the American in his straight sets win.

But a low first serve percentage is not going to get it done against a player the quality of Sinner, as the Australian star noted on Monday night.

“I think (over the) last couple of matches, those serves just decided to go away on a little vacay (as it) kind of deserted me for a little while. I think these numbers are not something that I want day in and day out,” the No.8 seed said.

“Obviously it’s great to get through the matches and you live to fight another day, but ultimately you still – like the first couple of rounds where I’m serving at the same pace, but I’m still looking at 60s, 60%, so that’s — anywhere around that is definitely good serving numbers for me.

“Ultimately I do have that extra pop on my serve where I can get … that 215 (kmh), for example, but that doesn’t mean I’ve got to use it all the time. It’s about using that variety and setting up the next shot and keeping your opponents guessing whether you’re going to go for the big one down the T or you’re going to take a little bit of pace off and go for the short slider, go somewhere in the body, just keep that variety going. I’m sure my serve will come back.”

The serve aside, it will be interesting to see whether de Minaur adopts the tactics of Holger Rune, in particular, and even Aussie wildcard Tristan Schoolkate midway through last week.

In the two sets Sinner has dropped in his Australian Open defence to date, both of his rivals have sought to take time from him by taking the ball early and swinging big. They have also attacked the net whenever possible.

Rune, in particular, enjoyed success when pressing Sinner on his second serve, either going for outright winners or trying to follow deep returns into the net.

It is a high-stakes play and carries with it the risk of a greater rate of unforced errors. But the alternative for de Minaur is grim, for what he has tried in nine prior outings has not worked.

The Aussie star said he was adopting an open mind when it came to planning for the clash.

“I think it’s a little bit of everything,” he said.

“There is a big part of all the matches that we have played in the past, looking at his matches from this week and what he’s done well and what he’s struggled to do. Then you’ve got to play the match on face value and forget about everything that’s happened in the past.

“The only thing that I want to take from the past is the matches that I felt like I played well and I found different areas where I could expose them. Ultimately going into that, we will come up with a set game plan. (I’ll) get ready for a battle from the very first point till the last.”

A SABALENKA STREAK SNAPPED … BUT A CHANCE TO JOIN THE GREATS REMAINS

On a windy night in Melbourne, dual-Australian Open champion Aryna Sabalenka’s streak of sets won at Melbourne Park reached 25 before Russian veteran Anastasia Pavylchenkova snatched the second set of their quarterfinal on Rod Laver Arena.

But having survived a scare against a rival who led their head-to-head leading into the match 6-2 2-6 6-3, the Belurusian is daring to dream as she moves to within a couple of wins of joining the greats to win three Australian Opens in succession.

In the Open era, Margaret Court (1969-1971), Evonne Goolagong (1974-1976), Steffi Graf (1988-1990), Monica Seles (1991-1993) and Martina Hingis (1997-1999) have managed hattricks and Sabalenka remains on track to join them.

Only her semifinal opponent Paula Badosa and Wednesday’s quarterfinalists Iga Swiatek and Emma Navarro, and Madison Keys and Elina Svitolina, stand in the way of the powerhouse hardcourt performer.

“I’m really happy that I put myself in this situation where I have opportunity to became one of them,” she said.

“To be next to those names, wow, that’s just a dream. Of course, it always been in the back of my mind that I can do that. But you know, my main focus is … step by step.

“I know that if I’ll be able to bring my best tennis on each game, if not the best tennis, then the best fight spirit, I know that I’m capable of doing that. I’m just trying to focus on myself and on bringing my best tennis every time I’m out there.”

Badosa, who progressed with a 7-5 6-4 triumph over CoCo Gauff to continue her reemergence as a tour force, is a close friend of the dual-Australian Open champion.

But after reaching the semifinals of a grand slam for the first time, the former world No.2 said the pair will shelve their friendship for a period on the court.

“We’ll deal with it pretty normal. (There are) plenty of times (where) we had messages before the match,” she said.

“It’s pretty chill. We know how to separate things very well. We spoke about it so many times. We admire (and) respect each other. It’s going to be a battle inside the court, of course, but outside it’s super normal.”

THE LATE NIGHT HIT THAT COULD CREATE A WINNING HABIT FOR ZVEREV

As Alexander Zverev eased through his first few matches, a habit that might the key to the German breaking through for his first major title in Melbourne occurred behind closed doors.

Not satisfied with whipping Lucas Pouille and Pedro Marinez in straight sets in his first two outings on Rod Laver Arena, the world No.2 returned to the court after hours to continue training.

From the vantage point of one of the broadcast boxes that sits level with the court, this reporter watched Zverev get put through his paces by older brother Mischa and his father Alexander Zverev Snr, both of whom are former professionals.

As Thanasi Kokkinakis was in the midst of a battle against Jack Draper on John Cain Arena, Zverev was finetuning elements of his game and getting extra miles into his legs.

Whether this proves the key to the dual-grand slam finalist breaking through over the next fortnight, or in 2025, cannot be assessed now but it is a glimpse into his mindset.

The 27-year-old, who overcame service breaks deep in the opening two sets to defeat Tommy Paul 7-6 (1) 7-6 (0) 2-6 6-1, eclipsed a record of Boris Becker in terms of wins by German men at the Australian Open. But Zverev is far from satisfied as a result.

“I think the big difference in the thing that everybody looks at is Boris Becker lifted this trophy twice. I haven’t yet. So that is, I think, way more important than just match wins,” he said.

“Of course, I’m happy to be on that list, and I’m happy to be in that conversation of greats in German tennis. But … lifting the trophy is what is on my mind.”

The path to the final gets no easier for Zverev, who pushed Alcaraz to the brink in a classic Roland Garros final last year, but the German has confidence in his ability.

“I think if you are in a semifinal of a grand slam, you have to expect a tough match,” he said. “You’re not going to get to the semis of a grand slam by not deserving to be there and not playing great tennis. If somebody’s there, that means they have played great tennis.

“And yes, more often than not it happens to be Sinner and Alcaraz, or Djokovic, to get there because those are the best players in the world.

“So I’m going to prepare myself for a tough battle. I’m going to prepare myself for a very intense and high-level match. I know I have the level. I’ve beaten them before. Hopefully I can do that again in two days’ time.”