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Australian Open 2023 Men's Final: TV Schedule, Start Time and Live Stream
January 27, 2023
Novak Djokovic and Stefanos Tsitsipas will meet in a Grand Slam final for the second time at the 2023 Australian Open.
Djokovic once again plowed through the field in Melbourne. He is one win away from his 10th Australian Open title.
Tsitsipas will try to break the deadlock the "Big Three" of men's tennis have on the Australian Open title.
Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer won the last eight titles down under and all but one of the finals since 2006. Stanislas Wawrinka broke the run of championships in 2014.
Despite Djokovic's impressive Grand Slam final record, winning 11 of his last 13 appearances, Tsitsipas can look to opponents not making it smooth sailing for the Serbian.
The third-seeded Greek took two sets off Djokovic at the 2021 French Open. That final started a run of four championship matches in a row in which Djokovic dropped at least a set.
Tsitsipas needs to bring a perfect game to Rod Laver Arena to beat Djokovic, but he has to remind himself that a path to victory is not impossible against the nine-time Australian Open champion.
Australian Open Men's Final Info
Date: Monday, January 30
Start Time: 3:30 a.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: ESPN.com and ESPN app
Preview
Djokovic produced one of his best runs to the final in Melbourne, as he has dropped just a single set in six matches.
Three of his last four victories were against seeded players. He dominated No. 5 seed Andrey Rublev in the quarterfinals in a 6-1, 6-2, 6-4 victory. Alex De Minaur, the No. 22 seed, had no chance to spring an upset in front of his home crowd in the fourth round, taking just five games in a 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 humbling. No. 27 seed Grigor Dimitrov gave the 21-time Grand Slam champion the most difficulty in this run, forcing a tiebreak in an eventual 7-6 (7), 6-3, 6-4 defeat in the third round.
Djokovic was only on court for two hours and 20 minutes for his semifinal match against unseeded American Tommy Paul, defeating the first-time Grand Slam semifinalist 7-5, 6-1, 6-2.
The short three-set matches that Djokovic has mostly experienced in Melbourne kept him fresh in case the final goes the distance.
Tsitsipas was on court for three hours and 21 minutes for his semifinal win over No. 18 seed Karen Khachanov.
The 24-year-old was tested by his two toughest opponents in Melbourne. Khachanov took a set off him but the Greek won 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-3 to book a spot in his first Melbourne final.
The Italian No. 15 seed, Jannik Sinner, forced him to five sets in the fourth round, before Tsitsipas regained composure to win 6-4,6-4, 3-6, 4-6, 6-3 in just under four hours.
Tsitsipas won his other four matches in straight sets, but it is slightly concerning for his championship hopes that he struggled in stretches against Sinner and Khachanov.
The two-time major finalist needs to be in top form to beat Djokovic, especially after Djokovic's near-faultless display in Melbourne so far.
Tsitsipas was at his best in the first two sets of the 2021 French Open, but then he could not put away Djokovic, who ended up claiming his second French Open title with a 6-7 (6), 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 victory at Roland Garros.
Djokovic has had a hold on the rivalry with Tsitsipas over the last four years. He has won nine consecutive matches over the Greek and owns a 10-2 record in the head-to-head series. Tsitsipas' only wins against Djokovic came in three sets in Canada in 2018 as well as Shanghai in 2019.
Tsitsipas' many duels against Djokovic could help him because he knows the strengths as well as weaknesses of the fourth-seeded player. He will likely draw confidence from his 2-1 record against Djokovic on outdoor hard courts.
Djokovic's imperfect record in recent Grand Slam finals could appear again and give Tsitsipas a shot at winning.
Djokovic dropped a set in the 2021 Wimbledon final to Matteo Berrettini, lost the 2021 U.S. Open final in straight sets to Daniil Medvedev and was taken to four sets by Nick Kyrgios at Wimbledon in 2022.
Djokovic has not won a Grand Slam final in straight sets since Melbourne two years ago, when he defeated Medvedev. He won four of his titles down under by straight sets and every Australian Open final he's competed in.
Djokovic will undoubtedly be the favourite, but there could be a small window for Tsitsipas to win the title. If that opens up, the experience and pressure which ultimately got to him in Paris in 2021 could be vital.