The tennis world has witnessed the emergence of a gripping rivalry between Novak Djokovic and young talent Carlos Alcaraz in the post-retirement age of Roger Federer and the temporary sidelining of Rafael Nadal. They’ve played only four times since 2022, with each winning two matches. The most famous clash was at Wimbledon, where Alcaraz triumphed in a thrilling five-set battle lasting three hours, forty-four minutes.
Off the court, Alacarz and Novak Djokovic seem to share a unique respect for each other, with the Spanish star calling it a pleasant relationship.
Carlos Alcaraz describes Djokovic as a fantastic individual
Carlos Alcaraz has described the relationship that exists between him and Novak Djokovic as very pleasant after the Spaniard suffered a setback in the early rounds of the Paris Masters. “We have a very pleasant relationship; he is a wonderful person. These are very good moments that I have with him off the court,” Alcaraz said of his relationship with Djokovic.
Also, Alcaraz admitted that he has no possibility of beating Djokovic for the Year-End no. 1 ranking following his devastating 3-6, 4-6 loss to Roman Safiullin. “After this defeat, I have no chance; all the ones I had to finish No. 1 at the end of the year are gone. We’re not going to think that; I think there are zero chances.”
“Losing in the early rounds of tournaments that you hope to make it to the final rounds or that you push yourself hurts. Today is one of the few times I don’t want to think about the next few days, of training. But it has to be done, there’s one tournament left. But these defeats hurt a lot,” Alcaraz added. Novak Djokovic leads with 670 points, which means Alcaraz still hasn’t automatically lost all his chances, but the Serbian is in a more comfortable position to end the year as No. 1.
Novak Djokovic won practice match against Alcaraz
In a recent video, Novak Djokovic was seen practicing with Carlos Alcaraz ahead of the Rolex Paris Masters, and the 20-year-old star admitted that he lost the game, but he is hoping that the loss in practice doesn’t turn around to become a defeat when they meet.
“I think it was the best way to get ready for this tournament—practice with the best one,” the Spaniard said. “We spoke before coming here to Paris and we, yeah, we talked about if we could practice one day. It happened yesterday. He won! Hopefully just for practice!”
“Everyone is at their own pace, of course. He’s with his team, I’m with mine. But we have a great relationship off the court. He’s a wonderful person. We talk about everything and anything. Obviously, he’s not going to give me advice on how to beat him, since we’re battling for the No. 1 spot in the world, but we talk about all sorts of things: the tour, things to improve, other sports, I saw he was at the rugby match… After training, in fact, we had a ‘foot-tennis’ game. These are great moments.”
The 20-year-old tennis sensation didn’t shine in his opening match at the Paris Masters, suffering a defeat to Roman Safiullin. He candidly acknowledged that the demanding season had left its mark on him. However, his eyes are now set on the ATP Finals in Turin, with hopes running high that tennis enthusiasts will witness the resurgence of this Spanish star at the prestigious event.
