The 2023 China Open just concluded, and Carlos Alcaraz, after having a superlative run through the tournament, stumbled in the last stage as he succumbed to a straight-sets loss to Jannik Sinner. Sinner’s triumph was an upset, given that Alcaraz has had a stellar season where he won Wimbledon.
That victory in London, over Novak Djokovic proved to be a pivotal match in the Carlo-Djoker rivalry. As stated by Alcaraz himself, he was 5 years old when Novak was winning trophies. The Serbian has become a fierce competitor to Alcaraz over the course of 2023.
Carlos Alcaraz always thinks about Novak Djokovic during practice
After Djokovic rampaged through the US Open roster in his road to becoming New York’s champion, he moved ahead of Carlos Alcaraz in the ATP rankings as the new world no. 1. The change in guard signaled an end to Carlos’ nine-month reign at the top.
In an interview, Alcaraz admitted to having Djokovic on his mind during practice sessions. The 24-time grand slam champion seems to motivate Alcaraz to practice better and be at his best in his quest to usurp Djokovic’s pole position in the ATP rankings.
“I have Djokovic on my mind almost in every practice(session). I practice with a goal and play tournaments with the goal of ending the year as world no.1.”, he said.
“I have to practice at my best, and go 100% at the ball in order to catch him.”, he added.
Several fans took to Twitter to remind Alcaraz of his contest with Sinner, who has called Djokovic as Alcaraz’s biggest rival.
Alcaraz will likely meet Novak again this year, in a continuation of their entertaining conflict. He holds the upper hand over the Serbian, as he has as many as 2000 points to gain over the next few months, as compared to very little for Djokovic, who has to defend his points in the upcoming Paris Masters tournament. That gives Alcaraz a chance to regain the world no.1 ranking from Djokovic.
Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic’s rivalry
The pair first met in 2022, when Alcaraz was slowly creeping up to the upper echelons of tennis. The Spaniard managed to upset Djokovic then, in the Madrid Open, as he signalled his arrival at the top.
A year later, after Alcaraz had achieved astounding accolades for his US Open victory and becoming the youngest world no. 1, they met again in the French Open, where Djokovic defeated Alcaraz 6-3, 5-7, 6-1, 6-1.
Alcaraz exacted his revenge on Djokovic, in the aforementioned epic final at Wimbledon, as he won his second gram slam title. The rivalry still had gas left in the tank, and Djokovic gained parity when he triumphed over Alcaraz in the Cincinnati Open final.
The head-to-head records stand at 2-2, with Alcaraz coming agonizingly close to a reunion in the US Open, and stand to change as the duo are primed to meet again twice this year, in the Paris Masters and the Nitto ATP Finals.
What are your thoughts on the fierce rivalry between Djokovic and Alcaraz? Will the Spaniard become world no.1 before the season culminates? Let us know in the comments section below.
