MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Novak Djokovic refused to let anything stop his pursuit of a record 25th Grand Slam trophy in the Australian Open quarter-finals. No problem with his left leg. Not an early deficit. And not the child over the net, Carlos Alcarazwho made things difficult and looked at their own piece of history.

Djokovic overcame it all, as he so often did on the road to so many triumphs, entering the semi-finals at Melbourne Park for the 12th time with a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Alcaraz in a glittering showdown on Tuesday night between a pair of stars born 16 years apart and at opposite ends of their careers.

“I just wish this match today was the final,” Djokovic said. “One of the most epic matches I’ve played on this court. On any court.”

The action was nonstop, the shot production brilliant, even as the encounter stretched for more than 3 1/2 hours and almost until 1 a.m. — never more so, perhaps, than when Alcaraz saved a break point in the fourth set. The 33-move exchange was the longest of the night, and when it ended with Djokovic sailing a forehand long, the capacity crowd at Rod Laver Arena went wild. Djokovic reached for his troublesome leg and yelled at his entourage; Alcaraz leaned his chest on a towel drawer and grinned.

It only proved to delay the final result.

Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts during his quarterfinal match against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain at the Australian Open tennis in Melbourne, Australia, Tuesday, Jan. 21, 2025. (AP Photo/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake)

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS/Asanka Brendon Ratnayake

With his wife, son and daughter cheering in the stands – dad joked about the late hour afterwards – No. 7 seed Djokovic prevailed thanks to the kind of remarkable returns and blunders against Alcaraz as big-three rival Roger Federer. and Rafael Nadal handled for years.

Djokovic enjoyed some of his own best efforts in the latter stages, pointing to his ear or blowing kisses or spreading his arms while puffing out his chest. There was the forehand winner on a 22-stroke point that earned the break for a 5-3 lead in the third set. It was the final point of the set, which included a sprint back to the net to chase down a lob. Alcaraz wasn’t shy either, shouting “Vamos!” and pumped his fists after a particularly booming forehand in the fourth set.

When the match ended, Djokovic yelled at his team’s box before giving his coach, Andy Murraya hug. Then Djokovic applauded No. 3 seed Alcaraz as he left the court.

“I’m sure we’ll see a lot of him,” Djokovic said. “Maybe not as much as I’d like.”

On Friday comes Djokovic’s 50th major semifinal against the No. 2 seed Alexander Zverevtwo-time majors runner-up who beat No. 12 Tommy Paul 7-6 (1), 7-6 (0), 2-6, 6-1. The other men’s quarterfinals are Wednesday: No. 1 Jannik Sinner vs. No. 8 Alex de Minaur, and No. 21 Ben Shelton vs. unseeded Lorenzo Sonego.

This was the eighth meeting between Djokovic and Alcaraz, but the first at the Australian Open – and the first not in the semi-finals or final. Zverev called it “the clash of a generation” between “two of the best players who probably ever touched a tennis racket.”

Hard to find the exaggeration.

At 37, Djokovic is arguably past his prime, yes, but no man has won more Australian Open championships than his 10 or more Grand Slam titles than his 24. At 21, Alcaraz is unlikely to have yet reached his peak, yes, but no man had ever reached No. 1 in the rankings as a teenager until he did so or collected major trophies on three different surfaces his age.

Alcaraz has not been shy about hoping to complete a career Grand Slam by adding a victory in Australia to the two he owns from Wimbledon – beating Djokovic in the final of 2023 and 2024 — and one each from the US Open and French Open. Djokovic made getting an Olympic gold medal for Serbia his priority in 2024 and succeeded at the Paris Games last August — beat Alcaraz in the final — and otherwise mainly cares about the majors.

Djokovic had something else on his mind lately: Angered by insults on air from an Australian TV commentator, he refused to speak to the host nation’s official tournament broadcaster on Sunday. Djokovic got the excuses he was looking for from the channel and its staff on Monday, and made it known that he was ready to focus on facing Alcaraz.

But at 4-all, Djokovic grabbed his thigh and crouched down after reaching for a shot. He finished that match but lost it before taking a medical timeout. When play resumed, his left thigh was taped, and Alcaraz served out that set. Anyone who thought Djokovic could go into the night cautiously is unfamiliar with his game. He began attacking Alcaraz’s serve relentlessly and soon the second set was his.

“If I lost the second set, I don’t know if I would continue to play,” Djokovic said, crediting medication from the tournament doctor for helping him feel better.

There was not an empty blue seat in the stadium, and fans shouted repeatedly between the points and drew a stern, “Enough. Thank you,” from chairman Eva Asderaki-Moore.

While the ball was in play, however, it became fairly quiet, the silence pierced only by the screech of seagulls flying overhead or the squeak of sneakers or the “Aaahs” and “Ooohs” of impressed ticket holders during electric exchanges.

Djokovic and Alcaraz showed off their skills as the temperature dipped below 70 degrees Fahrenheit (20 Celsius) and the wind blew at 30 mph (nearly 50 km/h), flapping Djokovic’s blue shirt (though not Alcaraz’s tighter sleeveless number).

Both tracked shots they had nothing to do with. Both went from defense to attack and conjured winners out of nowhere. Both did much more, too, whether Alcaraz’s well-disguised drop shots or Djokovic’s stunning returns, including two winners to close out the second set.

But it was Djokovic who was better on this memorable night.

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Howard Fendrich has been the AP’s tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: https://apnews.com/author/howard-fendrich. More AP Tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis

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