Next Gen? Pfft. Usual suspects Djokovic and Nadal set for Aussie Open showdown

All that talk about the Next Generation players -- you know, the under-25ers scoring all the headlines and upsets here in Melbourne, the guys poised to take the baton from the aging Big Four and usher a new era into the game: Let's shelve that for now.

Because after all that, the Australian Open final (Sunday, 3:30 a.m. ET on ESPN) will be played between two of the best players in the history of the game, world No. 1 Novak Djokovic and No. 2 Rafael Nadal, in the 24th finals matchup and 53rd head-to-head contest of their careers. If you're keeping track, no matter who wins, this will be the 51st time in the past 56 Slams one of the Big Four will take home the trophy.

"The new generation is coming hard," Nadal said earlier this week. "But they can wait a little bit."

Here in Melbourne, Nadal is playing arguably the best tennis of his life. On the other side of the net, Djokovic is playing flawlessly himself, and he's only getting better each round.

Against No. 28 Lucas Pouille in Friday's semifinals, Djokovic, 31, made only five unforced errors in a 6-0, 6-2, 6-2 drubbing that took only 1 hour and 23 minutes to complete.

"Considering the occasion, this is one of the best matches I've played on Rod Laver in my career," Djokovic said of the match. "Every professional athlete wants to be in the zone, where everything flows effortlessly and you are executing automatically. You're driven by some force that takes over and you feel divine, in a different dimension."