Novak Djokovic of Serbia celebrates after defeating Tommy Paul of the U.S. in their semifinal at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, on Friday. (AP photo)

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Winning matches at the Australian Open does not give Novak Djokovic all that much trouble.

He has a 27-match unbeaten run, the longest at the place in the 55-year Open era. And now Djokovic needs just one more victory, against Stefanos Tsitsipas in Sunday’s final, to collect what would be a record-extending 10th championship there and record-tying 22nd Grand Slam trophy overall.

He won on Friday night, a 7-5, 6-1 6-2 victory over Tommy Paul in the semifinals, to advance.

There is plenty at stake Sunday, for him and for Tsitsipas, a 24-year-old from Greece.

In addition to the championship, the winner will move up to No. 1 in the ATP rankings, a place Djokovic has occupied more than anyone else and somewhere Tsitsipas has never been.

“Couldn’t be more ready for this moment,” Tsitsipas said after beating Karen Khachanov 7-6 (2), 6-4, 6-7 (6), 6-3 in the semifinals.

“I genuinely believe in what I’m able to produce,” he said. “That is more than enough.”

We’ll see if that is the case against Djokovic, who leads their head-to-head series 10-2, including nine consecutive victories. One of those came in the 2021 French Open final, which Tsitsipas led two sets to love before Djokovic came all the way back to win in five.

While Tsitsipas is still seeking his first major title, Djokovic is hoping to tie Rafael Nadal for the highest total by a man in Grand Slam history.

Djokovic also has this going for him: He is 19-0 combined in semifinals and finals at Melbourne Park.

“The experience of being in this particular situation and circumstances before helps. Also the fact that I never lost the Australian Open final definitely serves as a great confidence booster prior to Sunday,” Djokovic said. “But, of course, still, the job needs to be done on the court.”

Which is where things do tend to come rather easily for him.

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