The rivalry between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic has developed into one of the fiercest rivalries in sports. While Novak leads by three to one in the Grand Slam race, Alcaraz leads by five to two in the ATP Tour race. In addition, the Spanish star also ranks Djokovic among the world’s most searched athletes of the year.
Furthermore, the rivalry gets more entertaining as Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic are set to compete in an exhibition game in the Riyadh season organized by the Saudi Arabian General Entertainment Authority.
Carlos Alcaraz overtakes Novak Djokovic in 2023’s most searched athlete
Despite Carlos Alcaraz sitting in second place in the world ranking, he surpasses Novak Djokovic among the world’s most searched athletes. Alcaraz, after winning the Wimbledon, looks quite famous compared to the Serbian.
Alcaraz and Djokovic’s rivalry became fierce after the Spaniard defeated Djokovic to lift the Wimbledon championship title. The 24-time Grand Slam winner had his revenge at the Cincinnati final, which has been regarded as the best match of the year, in a sweat-soaked victory that lasted for 3 hours, 49 minutes.
In the list of most searched athletes, football megastar Cristiano Ronaldo sits at the top of the list with 199.4 million, while Neymar comes in second, garnering 140.9 million. Inter Miami star Lionel Messi sits third with 104.4 million, NBA legend LeBron James comes in fourth with 72.1 million, and Indian cricket star Virat Kohli rounds out the top five with 68.0 million.
Paris Saint-Germain star Kylian Mbappe comes in sixth, followed by Carlos Alcaraz in seventh with 60.0 million, and Novak Djokovic comes in second with 58.4 million, just 1.6 million below his fierce rival. Manchester City forward Erling Haaland seats 9th with 43.4 million, while Formula 1 star Lewis Hamilton is 10th with 34.9 million.
Carlos Alcaraz to face Novak Djokovic in Saudi Arabian exhibition
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will play exhibition matches in Riyadh in December. Saudi Arabia has become significant in sports in recent years, heavily spending to promote their football league. They have now turned to spending on the big players in tennis, with the likes of Aryna Sabalenka and Ons Jabeur already agreeing to play in the exhibition match, which is part of the Riyadh season, a giant festival organized by the country’s General Entertainment Authority.
In 2022, the Saudi Kingdom debuted its own men’s golf tour, paying players hundreds of millions of dollars to play in the tournament so they could jettison the traditional PGA Tour. The gimmick led to a pending deal with the PGA that gave Saudi Arabia’s enterprise organ a significant stake in the golf tour.
The exhibition game would be the fourth time Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic would meet on the court. The first time they met this season was at the Rolland Garros in June, where Alcaraz lost due to cramps but he prevailed in an epic thriller the following month at the Wimbledon championship.
