Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream: how to watch French Open semi-final for free from anywhere

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Their first ever five-set clash has shades of Federer vs Sampras

Carlos Alcaraz of Spain stretches for the ball at the 2023 French Open at Roland Garros
(Image credit: Clive Mason/Getty Images)

Watch an Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream

Looking for a free Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream? The French Open semi-final is free to stream on 9Now in Australia. Use a VPN to watch free from anywhere in the world if you're an Aussie abroad. In the US, Alcaraz vs Djokovic is live on the Tennis Channel. It's TSN in Canada, and Eurosport and Discovery+ in the UK. Full details on how to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic just below.

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Date: Friday, June 9
Expected start time: 2.45pm CEST / 1.45pm BST / 8.45am ET / 5.45am PT / 10.45pm AEST
Free live stream: 9Now (AUS)
Use ExpressVPN to watch your stream while abroad

Alcaraz vs Djokovic preview

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic are about to face off in a five-set match for the first time ever. It's scarcely believable that it's taken this long, but injuries and visa issues mean that the two players who have traded world No.1 status four times already this year have rarely featured at the same event. They have, however, met once before.

Alcaraz came from behind to stun the Serb at the clay-court Madrid Open a year ago, in a preposterously entertaining three-hour and 35-minute thriller that suggests we should all settle in for the long haul here. The first and the third sets went to tie-breaks, and Djokovic has said that he fully expects this to be the longest match of the 2023 French Open so far. 

There are undeniable shades of Federer vs Sampras at Wimbledon in 2001, the watershed encounter that marked the passing of the torch from a legend to a future all-time great, but despite Djokovic being seven years older than Pistol Pete was on that occasion, the prospect of winning that record-breaking 23rd grand slam title means the fire in his belly is burning hotter than ever.

This will be Djokovic's 45th semi-final in a major, compared with Alcaraz's second, but anybody who witnessed the 20-year-old dismantle Stefanos Tsitsipas in the last round would be tempted to write off the value of experience. The Spaniard himself has hailed it as the greatest performance of his career, but can he maintain those frightening standards when he's having to chase drop-shot after drop-shot in the searing heat of Court Philippe Chatrier?

This is going to be something special, and here's how to get an Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream and watch the French Open semi-final from wherever you are.

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How to live stream Alcaraz vs Djokovic for FREE

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Tennis fans in Australia are amongst the luckiest in the world, as they can watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic and the rest of the French Open for FREE on 9Gem.

That means viewers can also fire up a free Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream on the 9Now streaming service, which is compatible with most smart devices. 

Play is set to get underway at 10.45pm AEST on Friday night. Currently away from Australia?

Use a VPN to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic on 9Now from abroad.

Die-hard tennis fans might want to take a look at Stan Sport too, which is live streaming every match on every court, ad-free.

A subscription costs $10 per month (on top of a $10 Stan sub), after a 7-day Stan Sport FREE trial.

How to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic from outside your country

For broadcast and streaming details in more tennis-mad countries like the US, UK, Canada and New Zealand, just scroll down the page - everything you need to know is there, including details of who's showing Alcaraz vs Djokovic.

But if you try to watch your domestic coverage from anywhere outside your home country, you'll soon find a problem - geo-blocking. That's where the broadcaster prevents you from watching your usual feed from abroad. It's a common problem for sports fans all over the world. 

By downloading and installing a VPN, you can effectively trick your computer into thinking that it's back at home.

Use a VPN to watch an Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream from anywhere:

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How to use a VPN to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic

Using a VPN is as easy as one-two-three...

1. Download and install a VPN - as we say, our top choice is ExpressVPN.

2. Connect to the appropriate server location - open the VPN app, hit 'choose location' and select the appropriate location, eg: 'Australia' for 9Now.

3. Go to the broadcaster's stream - head to your home broadcaster's site or app and watch as if you were at home - 9Now for Aussies abroad.

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How to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic: live stream French Open in the US without cable

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Alcaraz vs Djokovic is scheduled to start at 8.45am ET / 5.45am PT on Friday morning, and it's being shown exclusively on the Tennis Channel in the US.

How to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic without cable:

If you don't have the channel on cable, you'll need a streaming service that includes it, and Tennis Channel Plus is the most obvious place to start.

A subscription to Tennis Channel Plus costs $109.99 per year, and lets you live stream numerous tournaments.

One important thing to note, however, is that both of this weekend's finals are being shown on Peacock TV and NBC.

OTT streaming service Sling TV is reasonably priced and includes NBC as part of its Sling Blue package in most major markets. The usual cost is $45 a month, but if you're new to the service you can get your first month half price. The Tennis Channel is available as part of an $11 per month Sports Extra addon.

Another over-the-top streaming service that includes NBC and the Tennis Channel is FuboTV, which costs $84.99 per month after a FREE FuboTV trial.

It's a much more comprehensive cable replacement, and carries more than 100 channels including Fox, CBS and ESPN.

Meanwhile, Peacock costs just $4.99 a month for an ad-supported version of the service that also offers live coverage of every big WWE event, Premiership Rugby, plus plenty more live sports. You also have the option of paying $10 a month for commercial-free coverage.

If you subscribe to Sling, Peacock, or any other US streaming service and find yourself unable to access coverage because you're out of the country, consider using a VPN as outlined below - of the many options, we rate ExpressVPN as the best of the best.

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How to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic: live stream French Open for free in the UK

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The French Open is no longer on free-to-air TV in the UK. Instead, tennis fans need to subscribe to Eurosport or its streaming arm Discovery+ to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic, which starts at 1.45pm BST on Friday afternoon.

A subscription costs £6.99 per month or £59.99 for the year, and lets you tune in on a wide range of devices, as well as the Eurosport TV channels. 

If you’re out of the UK but still want to watch, make sure you install a VPN so you can continue accessing UK streaming services from anywhere.

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How to live stream Alcaraz vs Djokovic and watch French Open tennis online in Canada

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In Canada, you can watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic on TSN. Play is set to get underway at 8.45am ET / 5.45am PT first thing on Friday morning.

If you get TSN as part of your cable deal, you'll be able to log in with the details of your provider for access to an Alcaraz vs Djokovic live stream. 

If you don't have cable, you can try the new TSN Plus streaming service for free for a limited time. 

Alternatively, you can subscribe to TSN on a streaming-only basis from CA$19.99 a month or $199.90 each year.

If you decide to subscribe or already have, remember you can take your favorite sports streaming service with you wherever you go - just try our No. 1 overall rated VPN 100% risk-free for 30-days and follow the instructions above.

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How to watch Alcaraz vs Djokovic: live stream tennis in New Zealand

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In New Zealand, live Alcaraz vs Djokovic coverage is being provided by Sky Sport. Just be aware that play is set to get underway at 12.45am NZST on Friday night/Saturday morning.

You can also tune in via the Sky Sport Now streaming-only platform, which costs $19.99 per week or $39.99 per month. The monthly package comes with a 7-day free trial. 

Meanwhile, Sky Sport subscribers can watch the tennis online using the country's Sky Go service.

Alcaraz vs Djokovic: how we test and review VPN services

Aatif Sulleyman
Aatif Sulleyman

Aatif is a freelance copywriter and journalist based in the UK. He’s written about technology, science and politics for publications including Gizmodo, The Independent, Trusted Reviews and Newsweek, but focuses on streaming at Future, an arrangement that combines two of his greatest passions: sport and penny-pinching.