TENNIS
Djokovic says Alcaraz is the best mix of the ‘Big Three’
The Serb admitted that Alcaraz did an excellent job by defeating him in the final and praised the Spaniard, who won his second major.
The tennis and sports world’s focus is on the man of the moment, Carlos Alcaraz. The Spaniard won the second Grand Slam tournament of his career by defeating the favorite Novak Djokovic in an epic battle that went five sets.
Things didn’t play out the way the world No. 1 expected at the start of the game, with Nole winning the first set 6-1, but Alcaraz proved that he has a rock-solid mentality by coming back to take the lead by winning the other two.
As in most of his career, Djokovic didn’t give up and found his rhythm, getting the best of Carlitos in the fourth set, and while many saw the Serb as the favorite to win the last one given both player’s sensations on the court, the Murcia native recovered his best tennis and played aggressively from the very first point, which translated into an epic win to lift the Wimbledon trophy.
Alcaraz: the best of Djokovic, Federer and Nadal
Asked if he believes that both players will face each other many times, Djokovic admitted he doesn’t know how long he will be on the tour:
“He’s going to be on the tour for quite some time. I don’t know how long I’ll be around”.
“Let’s see. It’s been only three matches that we played against each other. Three really close matches. Two already this year in later stages of Grand Slam events”, Djokovic said.
After the Spaniard’s impressive performance, the seventh-time Wimbledon champion said Alcaraz is the best mix of The Big Three:
“I think people have been talking in the past 12 months or so about his game consisting of certain elements from Roger, Rafa, and myself. I would agree with that. I think he’s got basically the best of all three worlds”.
“He’s got this mental resilience and really maturity for someone who is 20 years old. It’s quite impressive. He’s got this Spanish bull mentality of competitiveness and fighting spirit and incredible defense that we’ve seen with Rafa over the years”, he added.
After losing the final, the Serb is already looking forward to playing in the last major of the season, the US Open, and facing Alcaraz.
“I hope we get to play in the US Open. Why not? I think it’s good for the sport, one and two in the world facing each other in almost a five-hours, five-set thriller. Couldn’t be better for our sport in general, so why not”, he stated.
Alcaraz will now look to keep making history by trying to defend his US Open crown, while Djokovic will fight to win the third major of the campaign and the 24th Grand Slam tournament title of his career.