The Australian Open Men’s Singles Final between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic begins at 3:30. a.m. ET in Melbourne.
Alcaraz is -303 on the moneyline, while Djokovic is +242. This is my best bet to target on DraftKings Sportsbook for the Alcaraz vs. Djokovic match.
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Novak Djokovic Preview
There are two great narratives at play in this epic Australian Open Final. Carlos Alcaraz is seeking to become the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam. Alcaraz would be two years younger than his fellow Spaniard, Rafael Nadal, was when he completed this incredible achievement. It would also cement Alcaraz as the clear face of this next era of the game. Jannik Sinner and Alcaraz have split the last eight Grand Slam titles and faced off against each other in all four major finals last year. However, a win in this match would give Alcaraz his seventh career major title, three more than Sinner. Between that wide gap in major titles and his infectious personality, Alcaraz would become the clear superstar in the sport.
Part of the reason the achievement would be even greater for Alcaraz would be because of who he beat. Novak Djokovic is the greatest champion the sport has ever seen, with 24 major titles, 10 of them coming at the Australian Open. This is the event where Djokovic won his first major, and it would be very fitting if it were also where he won his 25th and final major. Djokovic had a bit of an easy ride through the first few rounds of the tournament. He demolished some easy competition, got a free pass after his opponent retired before the match even took place, then had another opponent retire when he was on the brink of elimination. However, Djokovic proved that he is the greatest of all time with his epic five-set victory over Jannik Sinner. Djokovic showed that he can still go deep into huge matches against elite competition and come out on top. He will do everything in his power to prove that he is still on top of the sport, at least for one more tournament.
Carlos Alcaraz vs. Novak Djokovic Pick, Best Bet
My best bet for this match is for Carlos Alcaraz to win in straight sets. After two epic five-set semifinals, it could end up being much more one-sided in the final. Novak Djokovic exceeded all expectations and shocked the world against Jannik Sinner. Doing that two matches in a row is nearly impossible. The amount of physical and mental fortitude required to beat Jannik Sinner in a five-set semifinal is astounding. While Alcaraz also had to go the distance, this is somewhere that the 16-year age gap between Djokovic and Alcaraz is significant. While both played such grueling semifinal matches, Alcaraz should recover better than Djokovic.
These two have played some great matches over the years. Djokovic leads the all-time head-to-head 5-4. Since the start of 2024, the head-to-head record is 2-2. They have faced off in two Grand Slam finals before, both at Wimbledon, in 2023 and 2024. Alcaraz won both of those Wimbledon finals over Djokovic, the latter in straight sets. Their most recent match was in the 2025 US Open semifinals, where Alcaraz also won in straight sets. In that US Open match, it was clear that Alcaraz had another gear that Djokovic could not keep up with.
Here is a quote from Djokovic himself following that loss to Alcaraz:
“I lost three out of four Slams in semis against these guys, so they’re just too good, playing on a really high level. Unfortunately, I ran out of gas after the second set. I think I had enough energy to battle him and to keep up with his rhythm for two sets. After that, I was gassed out, and he kept going. That’s kind of what I felt this year, also with Jannik. Yeah, best-of-five makes it very, very difficult for me to play them, particularly if it’s the end stages of the Grand Slam.”
Djokovic was able to break that trend against Sinner because he was fresh from playing so little tennis through the first few rounds. After that physical and emotional marathon, he should find it harder to keep up in this match. Alcaraz is also a much more creative and athletic player than Sinner, making him an even tougher matchup for Djokovic in this state. I’m backing Alcaraz to secure the career grand slam and roll through Djokovic in straight sets.
