By Mike Dickson for the Daily Mail
Published: 22:30 GMT, 25 January 2019 | Updated: 23:14 GMT, 25 January 2019
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Only one of Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic's 52 meetings has been at the Australian Open.
However, when it happened in 2012 it certainly left a mark, being the longest ever Grand Slam final when it ran to five hours and 53 minutes before the Serb prevailed 7-5 in the fifth set.
That match will be repeated on Sunday when the world's two best players meet in the championship match of a fortnight that has been a reminder of their superiority.
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal will battle it out in the Australian Open final on Sunday
The semi-finals told their own story. Nadal, 32, lost just six games against Stefanos Tsitsipas while Djokovic allowed his outclassed French opponent Lucas Pouille only four, taking just 83 minutes on Friday to win 6-0, 6-2, 6-2.
Asked if it had been his intention to outstrip the Spaniard, he replied: 'Yes. It was hard to do that, but somehow I managed.'
While the two protagonists have an aggregate age of 53 they have shown they remain at the peak of their powers, although in Djokovic's case that comes after a prolonged slump in the first half of last season.
Innovations like the 25-second shot clock — designed to curtail the excesses of these two serial offenders when it comes to time-wasting — should ensure there is no repeat of the marathon of
