Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have solidified their place as the frontrunners of men’s tennis after winning a total of nine slams between them – including all seven dating back to Australian Open 2024.
Though it appears a baton has been passed, Novak Djokovic is still not far off the pace.
The former world No.1 has made three consecutive major semifinals in 2025 and still asserts dominance over most of the tour.
While perhaps a notch below the supreme level he is used to producing, attaining these results as a 38-year-old – a sizeable age-gap between himself and his competitors – is nothing short of impressive.
Although Sinner stopped his chances of contending for a record-tying eighth title at Wimbledon, Djokovic ticked over 100 wins at The Championships and became the oldest men’s singles semifinalist after Ken Rosewall in 1974.
As Djokovic enters the twilight of his career, his name is increasingly connected with Australian tennis legends when it comes to age-related achievements.
PODCAST: Listen to Ken Rosewall & Mal Anderson on The Sit-Down
Rosewall currently holds the record as the oldest Grand Slam champion, man or woman, in the Open Era – a mark Djokovic could surpass should he win another major title.
On this week’s episode of The Sit-Down podcast, Rosewall revealed how he felt about the 24-time Grand Slam champion potentially taking his crown.
“Either way I wouldn’t mind, but Novak, you know, he deserves his record, what he has. He’s won more Grand Slams than anybody else, so another one wouldn’t hurt,” said Rosewall, now aged 90.
“For me, it was just one of those things. I mean I stayed playing tennis and that’s what kept me playing well and kept me feeling well.”
The triumph that led to Rosewall writing history came at Australian Open 1972, when the then-37-year-old won the ‘Golden Oldies’ final over 36-year-old compatriot Mal Anderson at Kooyong.
“The field wasn’t as strong as it could’ve been because a lot of European players didn’t like to play on grass too much in Australia and they never made the effort to play grasscourt tennis,” Rosewall reflected.
“So the ’72 tournament all of a sudden was very exciting for the tennis fanatics in Melbourne and the crowds were record crowds, so it was quite good when Mal and I played off in the final.”
Decades have passed since Rosewall, an eight-time major singles champion, last played a professional match and walked away from the court after competing for 25 years.
Yet he admits it’s not the longevity of his career about which he still thinks.
“The only thing I think about is some of the tournaments that I should’ve won or could’ve won, had a chance to win, like my four Wimbledon finals,” said Rosewall, who appeared the last of those four Wimbledon finals in 1974, aged 39.
But his untouched record remains one of his many great successes.
“Playing and winning in ’72,” he said, “is something I remember anyway.”