Saturday, October 26

Djokovic on Alcaraz “I Haven’t Played a Player Like Him Ever.”

By Erik Gudris | @ATNTennis | Sunday July 16, 2023

Could Carlos Alcaraz be the primary participant to mix the very best qualities of the “Big Three?”

Novak Djokovic thinks so.

Tennis Express

The 23-time main champion spoke concerning the sterling qualities of the 20-year-old Alcaraz who defeated Djokovic in 5 units to win his first Wimbledon title.

“I haven’t played a player like him ever, to be honest,” Djokovic mentioned after the lads’s last that Alcaraz gained 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4.

The 36-year-old Djokovic was requested in his press convention what’s the one high quality that makes Alcaraz so good proper now.

For Djokovic, the younger Spanish star reminds him of each his fellow “Big Three” compatriots Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, and even himself.

“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 best of all three worlds.”

That’s excessive reward certainly for Alcaraz whose fast rise to the highest of the lads’s sport in some ways equals the “Big 3”, together with the age after they every gained their first main title.

Alcaraz was simply 19 when he gained his first main eventually yr’s US Open. That was the identical age when Nadal gained his first main on the 2005 Roland Garros. Djokovic was 20 when he gained his first main on the 2008 Australian Open. Federer was just a few years older at 22 when he gained his first main on the 2003 Wimbledon championships.

“He’s got this mental resilience and 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,” Djokovic mentioned on Alcaraz.

“And I think he’s got some nice sliding backhands that he’s got some similarities with my backhands. Yeah, two-handed backhands, defense, being able to adapt. I think that has been my personal strength for many years. He has it, too.”

While Djokovic didn’t go into specifics on how Alcaraz mirrors Federer’s sport, its clear his fast acclimation to grass court docket tennis, together with profitable Queen’s Club and now Wimbledon, exhibits how adaptive and responsive he’s to any floor.

“Roger and Rafa obviously have their own strengths and weaknesses. Carlos is a very complete player. Amazing adapting capabilities that I think are a key for longevity and for a successful career on all surfaces,” Djokovic added.

When requested about Djokovic’s feedback on his sport, Alcaraz took all of it as a fantastic praise.

“It’s crazy that Novak said that, honestly. But I consider myself a really complete player. I think I have the shots, the strength physically, the strength mentally enough to (indiscernible) these situations. I don’t know. Probably he’s right. But I don’t want to think about it. I’m going to think that I’m full Carlos Alcaraz, let’s say, but probably I have some great ability from every player.”

Photo Credit: Getty


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