MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — An even 400 in Grand Slams and 102 in Australia. Novak Djokovic just keeps setting tennis records.
The 24-time major winner became the first player to reach 400 wins in Grand Slam singles when he beat Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (4) on Saturday night in the third round of the Australian Open.
Click to Gallery
Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a forehand return to Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a backhand return to Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia falls during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts after a fall during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
It improved his win-loss record to 102-10 at the Australian Open, too, equaling Roger Federer's career haul for the most-ever match wins at the season's first major.
Djokovic has won the Australian Open 10 times, more than anyone else. At 38, he's in Australia aiming for a 25th career major that would make him the most decorated tennis player of all time.
Djokovic apologized for a moment of frustration in the seventh game of the second set, when he swiped the ball away angrily and it flew just past a ball girl crouching at the net post.
“I apologized for that. That was not necessary and in the heat of the moment,” he said. "I was lucky there and I’m sorry for causing any distress to the ball kid or anybody.”
Djokovic was disqualified from the U.S. Open in 2020 for accidentally hitting a line judge in the throat with a ball by angrily smacking a ball behind him after dropping a game in his fourth-round match.
Aside from that brief loss of temper, Djokovic was mostly in control against van de Zandschulp and was untroubled except for a few moments in the third set — when he tripped and tumbled to the court in the third game, and later when he faced two set points in the 12th.
A medical timeout at the changeover after the third, when the trainer taped the ball of his right foot, and a forehand winner down the line diffused the first two of those issues.
As Djokovic faced his second set point, chair umpire John Blom had to urge the crowd — repeatedly — not to make noise between the first and second serves.
An animated Djokovic saved the next one, too, pretending to head the ball like a soccer player as the Dutchman's shot sailed over the baseline.
The crowd chanted “Nole, Nole, Nole” in support before he produced a winning serve to force a tiebreaker, which he won.
Djokovic was happy to be playing a night match on a day when the tournament's extreme heat policy had to be invoked and two-time defending champion Jannik Sinner struggled before advancing in the afternoon conditions.
“I managed to have a ‘good’ fall if you can say so, I could protect myself,” Djokovic said of the tumble. “Things could have been pretty ugly.”
He said his body is feeling good for this stage of the tournament, but he's not getting too far ahead of himself after semifinals at all four majors last year.
“I must say, it’s been a great start of the tournament,” he said. “Last year I learned a lesson. I got too excited too early in some of the Grand Slams ... getting injured three out of four.”
Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz split the four majors between them and, while Djokovic concedes “they're playing on a different level right now,” he added: “I’m still trying to give these young guys a push for their money.”
With his first-round win over Pedro Martinez, Djokovic equaled two all-time tennis records by starting his 21st Australian Open and his 81st Grand Slam event, and he added another milestone with his 100th win at Melbourne Park.
That made him the first man to win 100 or more matches on three surfaces at the Grand Slams, with his 102 on grass at Wimbledon and 101 on clay at Roland Garros.
Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a forehand return to Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dar Yasin)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia plays a backhand return to Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands during their third round match at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia falls during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
Novak Djokovic of Serbia reacts after a fall during his third round match against Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands at the Australian Open tennis championship in Melbourne, Australia, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Dita Alangkara)
PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Jalen Brunson scored 31 points, OG Anunoby added 23 and the New York Knicks followed their most lopsided win in franchise history with a 112-109 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday.
The Knicks crushed the Nets 120-66 on Wednesday and then exploded with a 30-point third quarter in a stiffer road test that sent them to their first win in three tries this season over the 76ers.
Joel Embiid had 38 points and 11 rebounds, but turned the ball over on the final play of the game after the Knicks seemingly tried to intentionally foul him. Tyrese Maxey scored 22 points for the Sixers but shot an airball on a late tying 3-point attempt from near halfcourt as he anticipated an intentional foul that didn’t come.
The 76ers had pulled within two late until Anunoby and Landry Shamet followed with consecutive 3s that helped the Knicks stave off the late-game collapse.
Led by Brunson, the Knicks opened the quarter on a 21-7 run and made Philly sound a bit like the inside of Madison Square Garden. The “Let’s go Knicks!” chants that had largely been tamped down by boos in a competitive first half, instead filled the arena with each big Knicks bucket.
Brunson gave a little wave after he buried a 3 for an 84-72 lead. Embiid tried to rally the Sixers and his three-point play in the fourth — aided by a sixth foul on Karl-AnthonyTowns — cut it to 98-92.
It wasn’t enough and a Knicks team that had lost nine of its previous 11 games heading into the Nets game has now won two straight. Modest, yes, but good enough to ensure the Sixers didn’t gain ground on them in the East standings.
HORNETS 119, WIZARDS 115
CHARLOTE, N.C. (AP) — Brandon Miller scored 21 points as the Charlotte Hornets beat Washington, sending the Wizards to their ninth straight loss.
Miles Bridges and LaMelo Ball each scored 20 points, Kon Knueppel added 16 and Moussa Diabate 11 as the Hornets won consecutive games for the first time since January 3-5 against Chicago and Oklahoma City.
Tre Johnson had career-highs of 26 points and six assists for the Wizards, who, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, fielded the youngest starting lineup, by average age, since the NBA began tracking starters in 1970-71. Washington’s starting five, at an average age of 20.64 years old, beat the previous youngest lineup of 20.74, fielded by Oklahoma City on April 10, 2021 against Philadelphia.
CAVALIERS 119, MAGIC 105
ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 27 of his 36 points in the second half and Cleveland pulled away to a win over Orlando.
Jaylon Tyson added 17 points for the Cavaliers and Evan Mobley had 13 points and seven rebounds.
Paolo Banchero led the Magic with 27 points. Desmond Bane added 20 points and Anthony Black finished with 16 points, five rebounds and five assists.
Jalen Suggs returned after missing eight games with a bruised right knee and had 9 points and six assists in 24 minutes for Orlando.
Playing without Darius Garland (sore toe) and DeAndre Hunter (sore knee), the Cavaliers won for the fifth time in six games.
After Mitchell scored on four layups and a short bank shot in the third quarter, Cleveland got 3-pointers from Lonzo Ball, Mobley and Tyrese Proctor in the first 3 1/2 minutes of the fourth quarter to take a 97-79 lead, the largest of the game.
Banchero hit three 3-pointers in the final period, but the Magic could get no closer than nine.
Mitchell made 15 of 30 shots and had nine assists and two steals.
BULLS 114, CELTICS 111
CHICAGO (AP) — Kevin Huerter made a 3-pointer just before the buzzer, lifting Chicago past Boston before retiring Derrick Rose’s jersey number.
Coby White scored 22 points and hit five of Chicago’s 21 3s, helping the Bulls win their fourth straight.
Rose entered rarified air after the game when the Bulls sent his No. 1 to the rafters, putting the Chicago product alongside Michael Jordan, Scottie Pippen, Jerry Sloan and Bob Love as the only players with numbers retired by the team.
The Bulls gave their crowd plenty to cheer before they honored the South Side product and former MVP by squeezing out a win over the Eastern Conference’s second-place team, even though Jaylen Brown scored 33 for Boston.
Chicago led 111-109 when White missed a driving layup and Smith missed the putback with 20 seconds remaining. Brown got the rebound and drove for a layup to tie it with 14 seconds left.
The Bulls called a timeout and worked the ball to Huerter, who nailed a 3 from the corner with less than a second remaining. Huerter arrived at United Center wearing a No. 1 jersey in honor of Rose.
Nikola Vucevic scored 16 for Chicago, and Smith and Matas Buzelis added 14 points apiece.
LAKERS 116, MAVERICKS 110
DALLAS (AP) — Luka Doncic had 33 points and 11 assists, and the Lakers erased a 15-point deficit in the final seven minutes of a victory over the Mavericks in the star guard’s second visit to Dallas since his shocking trade to Los Angeles almost a year ago.
LeBron James scored 11 of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, when Rui Hachimura had a four-point play before another 3-pointer on the next possession to put the Lakers in front for good as Doncic improved to 4-0 against his former team.
Hachimura’s 3-pointer for a 108-106 lead started an 11-2 run that Doncic capped with a driving layup for an eight-point edge, prompting the Slovenian star to turn his old bench and declare the game over.
Max Christie, who came to Dallas along with injured 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis in the trade for Doncic, scored 24 points. Naji Marshall had 21 points and 11 rebounds as Dallas’ season-best four-game winning streak ended.
The Mavericks outscored the Lakers 41-14 from the start of the third quarter until early in the fourth, turning a 13-point deficit into a 14-point lead. Brandon Williams, who scored 20 points, had eight on a 10-2 run to finish the third, which started with a 20-4 Dallas burst.
The lead was 15 points with less than 7 minutes remaining when the Lakers started their rally, sparked by James after a slow start had him with a minus-28 rating early in the fourth.
New York Knicks' Ariel Hukporti, left, blocks the shot by Philadelphia 76ers' Joel Embiid, right, during the second half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Jan. 24, 2026, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Chris Szagola)
