While Djokovic eased past 20-time Grand Slam Champion Roger Federer to reach the summit clash, Thiem defeated Alexander Zverev 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-4) to book a date against the Serbian in the final.

The Australian Open 2020 men’s final on Sunday at Rod Laver Arena Court in Melbourne Park will see the title-holder Novak Djokovic facing off against World No. 5 Dominic Thiem. While Djokovic eased past 20-time Grand Slam Champion Roger Federer to reach the summit clash, Thiem defeated Alexander Zverev 3-6, 6-4, 7-6 (7-3), 7-6 (7-4) to book a date against the Serbian in the final.

Djokovic, who will be eyeing his record-extending eighth Australian Open title, has never faced Thiem before at Melbourne Park. He also suffered a defeat at the hands of the Austrian on hardcourt at the season-ending ATP Tour Finals, and on clay at the French Open semifinal last year.

India tennis star Prajnesh Gunneswaran on Saturday spoke about the ‘exciting’ final and described it as a battle between “old vs new”.

Speaking on the sidelines of Tata Open Maharashtra in an exclusive telephonic interview to Hindustan Times, Gunneswaran said: “It will be a really interesting match. It will be something nice to see – old vs new. There is excitement to witness how the “next gen” can come up against the veterans.”

The world no. 123 further added that he is enjoying how the young talent are starting to coming up. The men’s tennis has largely been focused on the three veterans – Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, who have shared all the Grand Slam titles among themselves in the past three years. The last time any player other than the three won the Grand Slam title was in 2016 when Stan Wawrinka clinched the US Open defeating Andy Murray.

“All these young guys are starting to come up now. There is Zverev and Thiem… these guys are now knocking on the doors,” Prajnesh said. But despite the intriguing prospects, the Indian still believes Djokovic to be the favourite heading into the final.

On being asked to predict his winner for the men’s final, Prajnesh said: “I don’t know. Maybe, Novak.”