John McEnroe states what everyone got wrong about Novak Djokovic as he reaches the final of the Australian Open

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What on earth just happened at the Australian Open?

24 hours ago, many were complaining that the 2026 Australian Open had underwhelmed.

One thing is for certain, they aren’t complaining anymore!

After Carlos Alcaraz defeated Alexander Zverev in a five-hour-27-minute classic, Novak Djokovic took down the two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner in another five-setter.

Where does that performance rank out of Novak Djokovic’s best of all time?

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All four men deserve credit for their performances on Rod Laver Arena today, as they lit up the Australian Open.

But of the four, surely no one deserves more credit than 38-year-old Djokovic, fighting back from 1-0 and 2-1 down to beat Sinner.

During Channel 9’s Australian Open coverage, John McEnroe shared what everyone got wrong about the Serb.

John McEnroe says everyone assumed ‘pupil’ Jannik Sinner was better than ‘teacher’ Novak Djokovic

“It was the teacher who taught the pupil so well,” he said.

“We sort of assumed that the pupil was just a little better than what the teacher used to do, and a lot younger, and presumably hungrier.

“That’s the other part, how is this guy so hungry and wants it so bad?

“To dig that deep… And believe me, he had to dig super deep to pull this out.”

McEnroe then explained how Djokovic produced the perfect performance to beat Sinner.

“I said it before, he’s got to serve huge,” he said.

“He certainly did that!

Novak Djokovic vs Jannik Sinner – Match stats

“Jim [Courier] was talking about how big that forehand had to be, how big he had to go; we all knew that.

“He did that consistently.”

Djokovic went big time and time again, never letting up against a man 14 years his junior.

The Serb rolled back those years to produce a truly timeless performance on Rod Laver Arena.

But was that Djokovic’s last dance, or is there more left for him to teach…

Novak Djokovic hits back in rivalry with Jannik Sinner

Djokovic had the better of Sinner during the early days of their ATP Tour rivalry, and led the Italian 3-1 in 2023.

That lead didn’t last long, though, as Sinner took control, winning five matches in a row, to lead 6-4.

Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner’s head-to-head record

It was hard to imagine Djokovic ever picking up another win, as like McEnroe mentioned, many assumed Sinner had simply become a ‘better’ version of the Serb.

Nine times out of 10, that may be true, but today, Friday, January 30, 2026, was the magnificent outlier he and his fans had dreamt of.

But the job isn’t done for Djokovic, as he must now recover in time for the final.

In less than two days, he will return to Rod Laver Arena to take on the world number one.

What happened in Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz’s last Grand Slam final?

Djokovic and Alcaraz last met in a major final two years ago, at Wimbledon.

The clash, a rematch of their legendary 2023 Wimbledon final, failed to live up to expectations.

Alcaraz produced a dominant performance, winning 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 on Centre Court.

For some time, it seemed like that would be Djokovic’s last major final appearance.

Given another shot at Grand Slam glory, surely Djokovic won’t let the trophy slip through his fingers.

Djokovic will play Alcaraz in the 2026 Australian Open men’s singles final on Sunday, February 1.