Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz played an incredible final at the Cincinnati Open. The former emerged victorious 7-5, 6-7 (7-9), 6-7 (4-7) after an epic match that lasted nearly four hours. After his win, Djokovic remarked that Alcaraz’s mental strength does not surprise him anymore, commending the World No.1’s ability to run down every shot.
Djokovic then talked about the match point Alcaraz saved at 3-5 in the third set, praising the Spaniard. Having bounced back to win the second set, the Serb had a Championship point at 3-5, but Alcaraz played brilliantly to chase every return from Djokovic to ultimately win the point.
Novak Djokovic impressed by Alcaraz’s mental strength and match point save
The 2023 Cincinnati Open final had ups and downs for both players. Both of them lost Championship points and suffered medical issues in the late afternoon heat. At the post-match press conference, Djokovic said Alcaraz’s mental and emotional strength no longer surprise him like it did some time ago. He called the 20-year-old ‘brave’, saying his maturity and ability to handle pressure should be respected especially since he’s so young.
“It doesn’t surprise me any more. It was surprising me maybe, I don’t know, end of last year or beginning of this year, what he was doing, the way he won big matches, big tournaments. So impressive.
“I mean, coming out in important moments, going for it, brave. You just have to put your hats down to a guy like that, that plays so maturely, handles the pressure so well for a 20-year-old. We cannot forget how young he is. That’s something that is so impressive about him.”
Djokovic then talked about the match point that Alcaraz saved after an incredible rally at 3-5 in the third set. The World No.2 said that he sent the Spaniard to all different corners of the court and even played a drop shot, but he always got to it.
“I mean, that match point saved from him, I run him around two, three different corners, from deep backhand corner. I played I think a solid forehand dropshot. He was there in no time and made a passing shot in the corner. He’s just amazing.”
Alcaraz reminds Djokovic of Rafael Nadal
Novak Djokovic could not help but compare Alcaraz with the latter’s legendary compatriot Rafael Nadal. The Serb has an iconic rivalry with Nadal and the duo are in a race for many records, chasing each other. Djokovic said that the final in Cincinnati reminded him of his 2012 Australian Open final against Nadal. He added that playing against Alcaraz reminded him of his rivalry with Nadal at its peak, where they had to fight for every single point.
Alcaraz graciously responded to the comparisons with Nadal. The 20-year-old said the comparison was a great thing because it indicated that he was on the correct path.
“For me, obviously it’s great that he knows that every time he’s going to play against me, reminds him playing against Rafa or against the best ones because that means we are in a good path.”
The top two of the tennis world will move on to the US Open, which gets underway within a week. Both of them are title hopefuls and fans are praying for a repeat of the Cincinnati final in the US Open final.
