Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner appear to be in a class all to themselves.
They’ve won all eight of the Grand Slams the last two years, dividing them to four each.
No wonder they are the top two seeds at this Australian Open. But it’s pretty likely that one of them will break the tie – for now, at least.
Going into the Tuesday-Wednesday quarterfinals, only Lorenzo Musetti and Ben Shelton appeared to be capable of spoiling a possible ninth straight Alcaraz-Sinner matchup in Grand Slam finals. But both went down rather easily in the quarterfinals.
DJOKOVIC SURVIVES AGAIN
Musetti’s hopes ended when a leg injury interrupted his quarterfinal match against Novak Djokovic, and Shelton was simply out-classed by Sinner’s big game. Yes, even bigger than the 23-year-old Shelton’s.
And here I was thinking that Shelton was the youngest of the group. But Alcaraz is only 22 years old, and already possibly the king of the game, if you can forget Sinner’s awesome arsenal of powerful strokes.
Of course, Djokovic is still around, thanks to his last two opponents’ misfortunes and retiring in the hottest Grand Slam, clearing the way for his 54th trip to a Grand Slam semifinal.
Djokovic hasn’t even won a set in the last two rounds, but he is now two wins from a 25th Grand Slam title. He now faces Sinner in the semifinals. Djokovic’s only hope is that Sinner retires, unlike a couple of rounds earlier when he was saved by walkovers in the round of 16 and quarterfinals.
NOVAK ALMOST HEADED HOME
“I was on my way home tonight. He (Lorenzo Musetti) should have been a winner tonight,” Novak said after the Italian retired with a 6-4, 6-3, 1-3 lead over Djokovic.
It was late, too late for Novak Djokovic to officially pull out of the match. The clock in my Charleston, S.C., office was closing in on 2 a.m. It was much later a world away in Melbourne, Australia.
The man who has helped write the Australian Open chapter of many seasons. The master of hard courts Down Under. Novak is the one, but it may be too late.
LOOKING FOR A 25TH SLAM TITLE
Djokovic is at an age when many pro tennis players prefer to enjoy their fortunes watching at Road Laver Arena. His chances of winning a 25th major title are not good.
Of course, third-seed Alexander Zverev is still in the fight after turning back impressive young American Learner Tien in the quarterfinals. But Zverev’s odds of upsetting Alcaraz aren’t much better than Novak’s odds of taking down Sinner.
It just looks like another Alcaraz-Sinner showdown.
PEGULA MAY BE READY FOR A GRAND SLAM TITLE
Watch out for American Jessica Pegula. She is nearing her 32nd birthday and in another Grand Slam semifinal.
The way Pegula polished off red-hot 34-year-old American Amanda Anisimova, 6-2, 7-6 (1), things could get interesting going against 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina in the semifinals.
Rybakina ended, for now, Iga Swiatek’s hopes of winning a career Grand Slam.
And then there’s always powerful Aryna Sabalenka to worry about.
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James Beck was the 2003 winner of the USTA National Media Award for print media. A 1995 MBA graduate of The Citadel, he can be reached at Jamesbecktennis@gmail.com.
