After defeating Tommy Paul in Melbourne on Friday, Novak Djokovic entered his 10th Australian Open final with a record-breaking 27th straight victory.

Djokovic, who has never lost in either a semi-final or a final in the first major of the year, prevailed 7-5 6-1 6-2 to break the winning streak Andre Agassi shared with him after defeating Andrey Rublev in the last eight.

This match, despite having a similar final score, was not quite as easy as that first one, especially in the opening set, which the nine-time champion nearly lost.

Djokovic's hamstring problem, which had affected his preparation for the competition, also seemed to be bothering him once more, but he still has one match left, against Stefanos Tsitsipas, to win another championship.

NOVAK IS GOING FOR 10 🏆 👀@DjokerNole • #AusOpen • #AO2023 pic.twitter.com/4r3pfX0AxU— #AusOpen (@AustralianOpen) January 27, 2023

The semi ended as it started, with Djokovic in control, yet there was a blip when he looked to be coasting through the opener.

Having just passed up his first set point, Djokovic confronted the umpire when he was not allowed time to take a towel and appeared to lose his focus, allowing Paul to win the next seven points en route to consecutive breaks – the second clinched with a stunning 30-stroke rally.

Finally, with the set level, Djokovic regained some composure and soon enough took a long-awaited second set point before cupping his ear to the Melbourne crowd and being greeted with jeers in return.

It quickly became clear Paul had missed his chance as Djokovic cruised, his primary foe now that troublesome injury.

After stretching out his leg during the first-set collapse, the Serbian appeared in discomfort throughout a dominant second, asking for ice at 5-0 up ahead of Paul's sole hold in the set.

That ailment did not prove enough to derail Djokovic, though, as the third set followed a similar theme in an ultimately commanding semi success.

Data Slam: Djokovic closing on career-best streak

Now the sole owner of the longest Open Era winning streak in the main draw of the men's singles tournament at the Australian Open, Djokovic will match his best run at any grand slam if he beats Tsitsipas, having claimed 28 straight victories at Wimbledon.

Only Roger Federer (40 at the US Open and 40 at Wimbledon) and Bjorn Borg (41 at Wimbledon and 28 at the French Open) have previously had 27-match win sequences at two different majors.

ACES/DOUBLE FAULTS

Djokovic – 12/5Paul – 4/0

WINNERS/UNFORCED ERRORS

Djokovic – 31/39Paul – 18/32

BREAK POINTS WON

Djokovic – 7/11Paul – 2/9