Record 24-time Grand Slam men's singles champion Novak Djokovic will face probably the biggest challenge of his Australian Open title defence on Friday when he takes on Jannik Sinner in the first semi-final of the season-opening Major in Melbourne. The Djokovic vs Sinner tennis match at Rod Laver Arena will be telecast live on TV and can be streamed live on online platforms. (More Tennis News)
Djokovic, 36, shrugged off a slow start to reach his 11th semi-final in Melbourne Park with a four sets quarter-final win over 12th-seeded American Taylor Fritz. So far the Serbian world number one has dropped four sets, including in the first two rounds against qualifier Dino Prizmic and Alexei Popyrin. But 'Nole' was at his imperious best in the straight sets wins against 30th seed Tomas Martin Etcheverry and 20th seed Adrian Mannarino.
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Here, it's worth noting that Novak Djokovic has never lost a semi-final at the Australian Open, en route his record 10 titles in 10 finals. The Grand Slam of the Asia Pacific is his favourite Major, evidently; and he is on a 33-match winning streak at the Australian Open. The last time he lost a match in the tournament was way back in 2018 in the fourth round, to Hyeon Chung of South Korea. Of course, he missed the 2022 edition. Blame it on COVID-19 politics.
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Sinner, meanwhile, has emerged as arguably the biggest threat to Djokovic. In a fledging rivalry, the 22-year-old managed to beat the most successful male tennis player in history twice last year, including their most recent meeting in the Davis Cup Finals. He will be confident of pulling another one. The head-to-head is 4-2 in favour of his illustrious rival.
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The young Italian is now the only player to have not lost a set at the Australian Open 2024. Meaning, he has so far won five matches in straight sets -- against Botic van de Zandschulp, Jesper de Jong, Sebastian Baez, Karen Khachanov and Andrey Rublev. A win on Friday, and he will play in a Major final for the first time, having missed out at the Wimbledon 2023, a straight sets defeat against Djokovic.
When is Novak Djokovic Vs Jannik Sinner, Australian Open 2024 men's singles semi-final match?
The Australian Open 2024, men's singles semi-final match between Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner is on January 26, 2024.
What is the start time for Novak Djokovic Vs Jannik Sinner, Australia Open 2024 men's singles semi-final tennis match?
The scheduled start time for the Novak Djokovic Vs Jannik Sinner tennis match is 9:00 AM IST.
How to watch the Djokovic Vs Sinner, Grand Slam tennis match on TV and online?
In India, the Djokovic Vs Sinner Grand Slam tennis match can be watched on Sony Sports channels (TV) and SonyLiv platforms (live streaming). Elsewhere, the match is available on ESPN and Tennis TV (USA), Eurosport (United Kingdom), TSN and RDS (Canada).
The winners of Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner will face either third seed Daniil Medvedev, who's competing as a neutral or sixth-seeded German Alexander Zverev in Sunday's final. The Daniil Medvedev vs Alexander Zverev semi-final will happen later in the day. The scheduled start time is 2:00 PM IST.
