"This is Novak Djokovic's living room, his house" - Radek Stepanek on Serb's Australian Open dominance and potential SF clash with Jannik Sinner

Former Czech tennis pro Radek Stepanek has stated that Novak Djokovic will always hold the edge at the Australian Open and will do his best to maintain his dominance Down Under.

Djokovic has won the Melbourne Major a record 10 times and is the defending champion at the event this fortnight. After starting his campaign with hard-fought wins against 18-year-old Dino Prizmic and home favorite Alexei Popyrin, he beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry in straight sets.

During his fourth-round clash with Adrian Mannarino, the Serbian showed signs of being back at his best. He needed just one hour and 44 minutes to beat the Frenchman 6-0, 6-0, 6-3 and progress to the quarterfinals, where he will face Taylor Fritz.

If the 24-time Grand Slam champion manages to defeat Fritz, he could potentially face Jannik Sinner in the semifinals.

At a press conference in Melbourne, Stepanek said that Sinner will be physically ready to face Djokovic as he has won his matches at Melbourne Park in straight sets so far.

"If it comes to a match with Novak, obviously it's going to be a great battle, as always. I believe that it plays to his advantage that his matches are so far, you know, three-setters. He's not spending much energy. So if it comes to a match with Novak, then his tank will still be full," he said.

The 45-year-old, however, reiterated that Djokovic is not easy to beat in Grand Slams, especially in Australia.

"It will be very interesting. Still, it will be a different match because they are going to play best-of-five. As we know, this is Novak's living room. This is his home. This is his house. I know from my experience that he would like to keep that as his home. It will be very, very interesting and I believe a great battle when they face, if they face each other," he added.

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"It's going to be difficult" - Thomas Johansson on stopping Novak Djokovic from defending Australian Open title

Novak Djokovic is a 10-time Australian Open champion.

Former Swedish pro Thomas Johansson believes that it will be difficult to stop Djokovic from extending his dominance at the Australian Open.

Djokovic's clash with Taylor Fritz will be his 58th Grand Slam quarterfinal, which sees him equal Roger Federer’s record at the Majors. With 14 last eight appearances in Australia, he has also equaled Rafael Nadal and John Newcombe as the joint second-highest at the tournament.

The World No. 1 has not lost at the Australian Open since 2018, a 32-match winning run.

2002 champion Johansson has stated that while the likes of Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have played well in Melbourne this year, it would be a huge surprise if Djokovic doesn't lift the title on Sunday, January 28.

"I think it's going to be difficult because I think Novak is the guy to beat. I am very impressed with the way Alcaraz is playing at the moment. I think they can also have a battle here," he said.

"Sinner also looks good, but Novak is the guy to beat. You know, the interesting thing with Novak is that even if he's not playing well, he's winning matches. This is his biggest strength for me Yeah, I would be surprised if Novak would not win another time here," he said.