World number 1 Novak Djokovic will take on Frenchman Lucas Pouille in the men's semifinal of the Australian Open on January 25 at the Rod Laver Arena.

When and where to watch the matches live, online

The match between Djokovic and Pouille will not start before at 7:30 pm local time, 2 pm IST and 8:30 am GMT.

Sony Ten 2 and Sony Ten 2 HD will provide live television coverage of the Australian Open in India. The live streaming will be available on Sony LIV.

Djokovic vs Pouille preview

For one man, it is his first; for the other, it is his 34th appearance in a grand slam semifinal. Thus, there's no gainsaying how the match shapes up on paper. But sports matches are won and lost on the ground and in this case, on the court, Pouille has shown enough to hand Djokovic a fight on Friday.

Novak Djokovic
Quinn Rooney/Getty Images

The 28th seed has won by straight sets in only his first round match but has given evidence of his ability to grind out results. His association with former WTA No. 1 Amelie Mauresmo has paid rich dividends as was visible in his amazing quarterfinal victory over Milos Raonic.

"I didn't have to face a break point for almost three hours," said Pouille.

With visible confidence in his own game, he added, "even if I lost the third set, in my mind it was clear I had to stay focused on my service game, taking care of that, then trying to put as many returns as I can."

The number 1 seed was also all praise for Pouille saying, "I have always thought he's a great quality player and what he has done this tournament is fantastic. He has won against some top players."

Djokovic, on his part, had a much easier quarterfinal match compared to his opponent. The Serb's opponent, Kei Nishikori, retired injured and that must have been a blessing for Djokovic who has spoken about tiring after his fourth-round match against Daniil Medvedev.

But the Serb has not been flawless either as he has dropped two sets in the tournament but on each occasion, he has come back with added bite and gave his oppositions little breathing space.

Djokovic, the pre-tournament favourite, will be in for a tough fight but it will take a Herculean effort to send him packing from his most successful grand slam.

 Australian Open 2019: TV guide

  • UK: Eurosport
  • USA: ESPN and Tennis Channel
  • Australia: Channel Nine
  • Africa: BeIN Sport, Eurosport and Supersport
  • Canada: TSN
  • Caribbean: ESPN and Tennis Channel