The last chance – will Alcaraz & Sinner be stopped in Melbourne?

Going into the Australian Open, few people predicted anything other than Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner meeting again in the men’s final.

The pair have contested the past three Grand Slam title matches – Alcaraz winning the French Open and US Open, with Sinner claiming Wimbledon in between – as their rivalry continues to grow.

Now only Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic can prevent the dominant duo meeting in the Melbourne showpiece for the first time.

Spanish world number one Alcaraz plays German third seed Zverev in Friday’s first semi-final at 14:30 local time (03:30 GMT), followed by Italian second seed Sinner facing Serb fourth seed Djokovic.

It is only the fifth time in the Open era – and the first occasion since 2013 – that the top four men’s seeds have contested the semi-finals.

Two-time defending champion Sinner may not have looked completely convincing on his way to the last four but he is still the heavy favourite to beat Djokovic.

The 24-year-old was grateful when the Australian Open’s heat rule saved him against American opponent Eliot Spizzirri in a third-round match that he looked destined to quit because of cramping.

But he has since breezed past compatriot Luciano Darderi and American eighth seed Ben Shelton, despite looking unsteady on his feet in parts of both matches.

“Sinner’s movement now is absolutely phenomenal,” former British number one Tim Henman said on TNT Sports.

“When you think he should be on the defensive, he’s able to use that core strength and come back on the offensive.”

The physical state of 38-year-old Djokovic is where the bigger questions lie.

The 24-time Grand Slam champion, who will move clear of Margaret Court’s singles record if he wins in Melbourne, has barely played since Saturday after a fourth-round walkover and a quarter-final cut short by injury to Lorenzo Musetti.

While that might leave him fresher to push Sinner, the lack of action could leave him undercooked.

Djokovic lacked sharpness in his shots and movement against fifth seed Musetti, who led by two sets to love before quitting.

There are also concerns about the gruesome foot blisters that hampered Djokovic.

“Djokovic wasn’t tracking down a few balls that Musetti was hitting into the corners and didn’t look like he was attempting to run for them,” former British number one Annabel Croft said on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Australian Open daily podcast.

“That made sense after we saw the condition of his feet.

Alcaraz had never gone past the Melbourne quarter-finals before this year, but the 22-year-old looks well placed to win the title and become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam.

Alcaraz replaced Sinner at the top of the world rankings with his US Open success in September, producing a level over the fortnight that most observers considered the best of his career.

The six-time major champion says his performances so far at Melbourne Park have been “pretty close” to that standard.

The manner in which he destroyed Australian sixth seed Alex de Minaur in the quarter-finals – leaning into his greater explosive power and defter touch – was a brutal illustration of how far ahead Alcaraz and Sinner are.

It was also reminder of the emphasis which Alcaraz has put on improving his concentration during matches.

“Not having up and downs in matches has been one of the main goals for me,” he said.

“I’m just trying to play the same level and having the same concentration point after point after point.”

Zverev has proved an awkward match-up for Alcaraz, with the pair evenly splitting their 12 previous meetings.

The 28-year-old’s giant serve remains his biggest weapon and it has particularly excelled during his wins over Alcaraz.

It has also been key to Zverev’s progress in Melbourne – along with being fully fit – as he looks to reach the final for the second successive year.

Zverev has lost all three of his Grand Slam finals and has often been accused of being too passive in the biggest matches.

“I’ve worked on my aggressive game. I’ve worked on my first shots after the serve, my first forehand after the serve, maybe a bit more serve and volleying,” he said after beating Learner Tien in the quarter-finals.