How could it be otherwise, as soon as a new Grand Slam title was consumed for the Serbian tennis player, congratulations arrived. One of them came from one of his new rivals on the circuit: Carlos Alcaraz. In addition to reaching 10 Australian Open crowns and 22 Grand Slams, the Serbian tennis player has achieved another success by regaining his place as world number one.
Once again, the ATP ranking will begin with the name of who has held that position the most times. The loser in this scenario is precisely Alcaraz, who will vacate his throne after not being able to play the first «big tournament» of the season due to injury.
The 19-year-old Spaniard turned to his Twitter account to send him a message remotely. «Congratulations to Novak Djokovic on the Australian Open and his world number one title! Very well deserved! Hope to see you on court!» He wrote the former leader of the ATP ranking.
The post was accompanied by a slew of messages from his own fans urging him to pull himself together and go for the No. 1 spot in the men’s table again. It should be noted that Djokovic and Alcaraz have met only once on the ATP Tour, specifically last year in the semifinals of the Masters 1000 in Madrid, where the Spaniard won.
This is the first of many expected clashes between these two generational bannermen of «white sport.» Alex Corretja was kind enough to investigate the Carlos Alcaraz matter shortly after returning to the field. For Alex, Carlito paid the price for his efforts but he will return.
«I think the great effort he put in to win the US Open, to become number one in the world, all of that, it’s normal that it takes a lot of energy and it also takes a little bit of time to realize what happens when you’re number one, and the expectations you have to manage.»
Alcaraz has offered a preview of his mentality
Carlos Alcaraz has offered a preview of his mentality.
«The best in history, like Rafa, Roger and Novak, have never stagnated and have been improving over time. I hope to take those small leaps and improve my tennis, physically and mentally,» he said, according to Marca. «The courage with which I play.
I am not afraid, no matter who is in front of me. That has been basic to achieve what I have already achieved. I have always taken it naturally to face the best. That ambition has made me who I am right now,» he added.
