Novak Djokovic Beats Carlos Alcaraz in Australian Open Quarterfinals

Novak Djokovic defeated Carlos Alcaraz in four sets at the Australian Open.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts during his 1 4 final match against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain during the 2025 Australian Open at Melbourne Park in Melbourne, Tuesday, January 21, 2025. | IMAGO / AAP

The next generation of tennis stars still must run through Novak Djokovic. The 37-year-old is seeking his 25th Grand Slam singles title at the Australian Open and shows no signs of weakness.

Djokovic entered Melbourne as the seventh seed after missing several tournaments last Fall and sliding down the ATP Rankings, resulting in a brutal draw for the third seed Carlos Alcaraz.

While most fans expected another marathon match similar to the 2024 Summer Olympics gold medal match between the two players, today's match was more straightforward. Djokovic dominated Alcaraz in four sets: 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

Both players played aggressively. Alcaraz hit 10 aces to Djokovic's five but only converted 4/11 break point opportunities to Djokovic's 6/13 on break points.

Both players dealt with injuries during the match. Alcaraz limped around during a break in action, and Djokovic admitted to having to take pain medication during a medical timeout.

Speaking after the match, Djokovic said, "Since, I'm still in the tournament, I don't want to reveal too much. The medication started to kick in and it helped, no doubt. I had to take another dose, this sounds so awful, but I didn't know. If I had lost the second set I don’t know if I'd continue playing."

After today's victory, Djokovic has reached his 50th semifinal appearance at a Grand Slam, 12 of which have been at the Australian Open. Djokovic will face Alexander Zverev in the semifinals on Friday.

Meanwhile, it is back to the drawing board for Alcaraz. The Spanish tennis star has struggled (by his lofty standards) since making history last summer with back-to-back Grand Slam titles at the French Open and Wimbledon.

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