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Novak Djokovic's potential route to the Australian Open final

Novak Djokovic heads to Melbourne Park in search of a record-extending 25th Grand Slam title and 11th Australian Open success, and we've looked at the potential route he may face if he is to achieve that.

Australian Open

R1 - Nishesh Basavareddy

First up in Djokovic's quest for Australian Open glory is American prodigy Nishesh Basavareddy, who featured in the Next Gen ATP Finals in December and has been tipped for a bright future.

R2 - Pavel Kotov

Should Djokovic avoid a first round upset, he will most likely oppose Pavel Kotov, though the torrid form of the Russian suggests his encounter with qualifier Jaime Faria is far from a foregone conclusion.

R3 - Tomas Machac

The most likely candidate to face Djokovic in the third round is 26th seed Tomas Machac.

Machac did emerge triumphant in his most most recent meeting with Djokovic in May last year, winning 6-4, 0-6, 6-1 to reach the final of the Geneva Open.

However, the Czech star will likely have to overcome Djokovic's Brisbane International conqueror Reilly Opelka, who faces qualifier Gauthier Onclin in the first round before a potential meeting with Machac in the second.

Men's Australian Open draw in full

R4 - Jiri Lehecka

This segment of the draw is extremely tough to call and of the eight possible opponents, 24th seed Jiri Lehecka and 10th seed Grigor Dimitrov are best-equipped to reach this stage of the competition.

However, a lot hinges on the condition of Dimitrov, who was forced to withdraw from his Brisbane International semi-final against Lehecka with injury. The Bulgarian faces Fabio Fognini before either David Goffin or Benjamin Bonzi await in the second.

Should Dimitrov reach the third, it's likely to be Lehecka he will encounter. The 23-year-old faces Australian qualifier Li Tu in the first round and potentially Hugo Gaston in the second.

The winner of that faces Djokovic. The Serbian boasts a superior 12-1 win record against Dimitrov and he defeated Lehecka in their only meeting at the United Cup last year.

QF - Carlos Alcaraz

It's a matchup fitting of a final but the reality of Djokovic's reduced schedule and Carlos Alcaraz's post-Wimbledon slump means we've got a potential blockbuster quarter-final on the cards.

The pair last met at Roland Garros in the Olympics where Djokovic avenged his thumping at the All England Club by getting his hands on the one honour he'd yet to claim: Olympic gold.

Alcaraz has a tricky course if he is to reach this stage - a potential third round tie with Jordan Thompson could be followed by a fourth round clash against one of Jack Draper or Sebastian Korda - but everyone is aware of his exceptional ability, even if it hasn't translated onto Melbourne's hard-court surface.

Djokovic holds a slender advantage in the head-to-head and interestingly both of the hard-court ties went the way of the Serbian.

SF - Alexander Zverev

Should Djokovic prevail against Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev will most likely be waiting in the semi-finals.

The German has a kind path to the third round, where he will likely face Argentine Sebastian Baez, who is 1-16 in matches against top 10 players.

A Frenchman in either Ugo Humbert or Arthur Fils will presumably follow before the likes of Casper Ruud and Tommy Paul are potentially waiting for Zverev in the last eight.

Djokovic does boast the superior head-to-head record (8-4) but Zverev has been a nuisance to the 10-time Australian Open winner through the years, ending his hopes of Olympic gold at the semi-final stage in Tokyo 2021 and forcing a fifth set in their 2021 US Open semi-final clash.

F - Jannik Sinner

Facing the world number three in the quarters, the world number two in the semis and the world number one in the final.

It's an arduous journey to 2025 Australian Open glory but one befitting of the most decorated player in the sport.

Jannik Sinner will be contending with Daniil Medvedev, whom he impressively defeated in the final at Melbourne Park last year, Taylor Fritz, Andrey Rublev and Stefanos Tsitsipas on his side of the draw, but the Italian is capable of dispatching anyone when he's demonstrating his best form.

Sinner eliminated Djokovic in the semi-finals of the Australian Open last year and if the pair were to meet again, you best believe the 37-year-old will be yearning for a slice of revenge.

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