Carlos Alcaraz is all set to enter the US Open 2023 as defending champion. The Spaniard had beaten Casper Ruud in the final last year to win his first-ever Grand Slam title, which also guaranteed him the year-end ATP World No.1 ranking in the men’s singles category in 2022. While Alcaraz won 2000 points for his achievement, he needs to defend them this year to remain at the top of the rankings.
Now that might be an uphill task as World No.2 Novak Djokovic will be playing this year after last making it to the finals of the US Open 2021. As a result, Djokovic will have no points to defend and that makes him the favorite to become No.1 again. If Carlos Alcaraz does not win the title again, the Serbian would not only overtake him but also break a Roger Federer record of the ages.
How Carlos Alcaraz can help Novak Djokovic
Currently, Carlos Alcaraz is only 20 points ahead of Novak Djokovic in the ATP rankings. This is mainly because the 20-year-old lost in the quarterfinals at the Rogers Cup, which fetched him merely 180 points. While he lost to Djokovic in the Cincinnati Masters final and that fetched him 420 points.
Despite Alcaraz winning 600 points, it didn’t make much of a difference since Djokovic covered it up by winning in Cincinnati, which is worth 1000 points alone. And this was even after the 23-time Grand Slam champion did not participate in the Rogers Cup or the Citi Open prior to that in the North American swing.
Carlos Alcaraz.
Novak Djokovic.
One of the best sets you’ll EVER see.Enjoy…#CincyTennis pic.twitter.com/YGKYUhRm1s
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) August 21, 2023
Going into the US Open, Novak Djokovic definitely holds the edge not just when it comes to his title-winning chances. It is the fact that even if in the unlikely event of him getting knocked out in the first round and Alcaraz not winning the title, the Serbian superstar will become the World No.1 again.
If that happens, then Djokovic would mostly go on to break a record held by the great Roger Federer since the last 5 years. In June 2018, the Swiss maestro was adjudged as the top-ranked player in the world at the age of 36 years, 10 months and 10 days. Djokovic will reach the same age on April 2, 2024. What are the odds that the champion has another 45-week streak at the top? Quite high, one would think.
Who has a better chance at US Open?
When it comes to the US Open, many tennis pundits and fans are predicting a Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz final like it was at Wimbledon and Cincinnati. Perhaps, there is a case to be made for the fact that Alcaraz has not had the ideal preparation for the Grand Slam in which he is the defending champion despite getting some good practice and exposure to conditions that he will most likely tackle in New York City.
However, the Wimbledon 2023 winner might get a huge boost from the fact that he hit back at Tommy Paul in Cincinnati after losing to him in Canada. After that, pushing Novak Djokovic in 3 grueling sets showed that he is ready to take the US Open by storm this year too, despite facing some hand cramps in the Cincinnati final.
On the other hand, Novak Djokovic is a veteran, who takes a shine into hard courts like butter does to bread. Winning in Cincinnati immediately in his first tournament that he played since Wimbledon, showed that his preparations are up to point so far and going according to plan.
Recently, the champion spoke about how motivated he remains to win big tournaments and matches consistently despite the Wimbledon loss as people love watching him play. Based on these factors, Djokovic seems more comfortable of the two to take the trophy and a $3 million paycheck home this year.
