Djokovic, Tsitsipas to meet in Australian Open men’s final
Associated PressMELBOURNE, Australia — Winning matches at the Australian Open does not give Novak Djokovic all that much trouble. And now Djokovic needs just one more victory, against Stefanos Tsitsipas in Sunday’s final, to collect what would be a record-extending 10th championship there and record-tying 22nd Grand Slam trophy overall. His streak at Melbourne Park was put on pause a year ago when he got deported from Australia because he was not vaccinated against COVID-19, and he has waffled between acknowledging that offers extra motivation this time around and also saying, “I’m over it.” His parents and brother are back at the tournament for the first time in 15 years, but Dad did not attend Friday night’s 7-5, 6-1 6-2 victory over Tommy Paul in the semifinals after drawing attention by being seen two days earlier outside Rod Laver Arena with people showing support for Russia, whose invasion of Ukraine is now nearly a year old. One of those came in the 2021 French Open final, which Tsitsipas led two sets to love before Djokovic came all the way back to win in five. Also the fact that I never lost the Australian Open final definitely serves as a great confidence booster prior to Sunday,” Djokovic said.