Aus Open Day 13 - Djokovic vs Alcaraz, for history
The Tennis Podcast
David Law
4.5 • 2.6K Ratings
🗓️ 30 January 2026
⏱️ 66 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
The Dud Slam is no more! Catherine, David and Matt react to an extraordinary day as Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic both reached the final in impossibly dramatic fashion.
Part one - We start with Djokovic’s late night comeback victory over Jannik Sinner. How did he do it? What was new from him and what was vintage? And what more could Sinner have done on his many unconverted break points?
Part two (26:55) - Moving on to Carlos Alcaraz’s 5h27m win over Alexander Zverev, how did Alcaraz’s mid match cramps change everything and how smartly did he manage them? What part did the crowd play in Alcaraz’s victory? And how does Zverev reflect on this defeat?
Part three (55:51) - Sensation of the Day, doubles and wheelchair results, and predictions for Aryna Sabalenka vs Elena Rybakina in the women’s final.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Well, hello and welcome to the tennis podcast coming to you from Garden Square at 2.20 in the morning |
| 0:19.2 | after a day that has delivered all the drama that we've been |
| 0:24.0 | desperately craving for the last 12 days and more, quite frankly. |
| 0:29.0 | It turns out it was coming. |
| 0:30.6 | It was just all coming on one bonkers day. |
| 0:34.6 | First of all, a Shakespearean 5-, 27-minute semi-final between Carlos Alcaraz and |
| 0:42.8 | Alexander Zverev, the longest in Australian Open history, won by, to quote Daniel Medvedev, |
| 0:49.8 | the famous Carlos Alcaraz, followed impossibly this evening by 38-year-old Novak Djokovic |
| 0:58.8 | defying gravity to take out the two-time defending champion Yanik Sinner in five exhilarating |
| 1:06.8 | sets, the sum of which is a men's singles final on Sunday, which is as narratively delicious |
| 1:15.0 | as you can imagine. Twenty-two-year-old Carlos Alcaraz aiming to become the youngest ever man |
| 1:22.7 | to complete the career Grand Slam against Novak Djokovic, shooting for the outright Grand Slam record of 25 |
| 1:30.2 | and to be the oldest major champion in the open era. |
| 1:36.3 | So in total, nine hours, 36 minutes of breathless entertainment. |
| 1:41.8 | Our 12-day-long debt has been collected. |
| 1:45.1 | I feel alive. |
| 1:46.7 | I feel ruined. |
| 1:48.6 | I feel like I need a group therapy session. |
| 1:53.1 | So enter, as always, Matt Roberts, David Law, |
| 1:56.9 | and joining us tonight to help process the madness |
| 1:59.9 | the athletics Charlie Eccleshare. |
| 2:03.2 | David, your memory goes back the furthest. Have you ever experienced a single day quite like that? |
... |
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