No Challenges Remaining

After a dozen days that were mostly dull, the Australian Open kicked into high gear on Day 13, and so Ben and Tumaini stayed up late to discuss what made it so great. Carlos Alcaraz was up big, then was in trouble, then was up against the wall, but finally eked out a rousing win over Alexander Zverev to book his spot in his first Australian Open final.  But instead of being joined by his customary opponent Jannik Sinner for the fourth time in a row in a major final, Alcaraz will face 38-year-old Novak Djokovic, who used his restedness to deliver a redline beauty of a match. We look ahead to the final and how Djokovic might be able to win it, where these losses leave both Zverev and Sinner, and more. Thank you for listening! Our Patreon is back up and running to ensure NCR keeps going and stays ad-free, and we hope you can join in supporting NCR! And we especially thank our GOAT backers: Pam Shriver and J. O'D. And please check out Ben's new writing home, Bounces! And Tumaini's work at The Guardian!