In 12 grass-court matches this season, including seven that led him to the Wimbledon title, the Spanish player Carlos Alcaraz has proven that he can now defeat anyone on any surface, to the extent that he is now being compared to the "Big Three."
"He has proven to be undoubtedly the best player in the world. He can play tennis brilliantly on different surfaces and deserves to be where he is," confessed Novak Djokovic, his opponent and holder of the last four Grand Slam titles, despite his loss on Sunday.
However, the 36-year-old Serbian will have reason to feel disappointed, especially as he was denied his 24th Grand Slam title and the record-breaking eighth title on the grass courts of London.
Alcaraz also put an end to Djokovic's pursuit of winning all four Grand Slam titles in a single year, as the Serbian was the favorite in London after triumphing at the Australian Open and Roland Garros.
But the Spanish player was unstoppable, as he showed no specific qualifications on grass before this year, unlike the hard courts (where he won the US Open last year) and his preferred clay courts, on which he was raised.
Djokovic Surprised -
"Djoko" admitted that Alcaraz "surprised everyone with the way he adapted... his curved shots, his backhand, his net play, everything was fantastic. I didn't expect him to play this well on grass."
To the point that the only player to have won three or more times in each of the four Grand Slam tournaments now dares to compare him to the legendary trio that dominated world tennis for 20 years: himself, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.
"Nole," currently ranked second in the world, added, "He has the best of these three legends. Mental flexibility and incredible maturity for his age, the competitive mindset of the Spanish bull, and the incredible defensive ability we have seen in Rafa. He has a backhand that may look like my backhand, which has been my strength for years."
At this stage, the comparison seems inappropriate to Alcaraz to the point that he laughed initially and said, "For Novak to say that, it's madness."
Speaking about himself, he added, "I think I'm a truly complete player. I have the shots, physical and mental strength. So, I don't know, maybe he's right. But I don't want to think about it. Let's just say I want to be Carlos Alcaraz completely and that I have some fantastic qualifications like those three players."
Raising Doubt -
Nevertheless, there is now one thing certain in his mind, which is that the defeat he suffered against Djokovic in the Roland Garros semifinals in June could have raised some concerns about his ability to defeat the Serbian at his best.
The Spanish player, who maintained his world number one ranking after being threatened with losing it if he lost to Djokovic, said, "Before this match (on Sunday), I wasn't sure if I could beat Novak in a five-set thrilling match like this. Staying physically and mentally ready for five hours against a legend. It doesn't matter to me now. I'll remember it in the other tournaments."
So, after Federer's retirement in 2022 and Nadal's absence in 2023, will Alcaraz's resounding success on Sunday also lead to Djokovic being excluded from the list of contenders for the Grand Slam titles?
The Serbian doesn't see things that way yet, even if the psychological blow is likely to leave its mark. He frankly replied, "I hope so!" when asked if a great rivalry has emerged between him and the promising 20-year-old Spaniard.
He added, "He'll be around for a while, I don't know. We'll see. We've only played three matches against each other. Three matches that had very close results. Two of them were this year in the late stages of the Grand Slam," expressing his hope to "face Alcaraz again in the US Open" in September. It's supposed to be in the final again.
AFP