2023-06-08 13:26:07
This is the match that everyone wanted to see, and they wanted to play it, a question of supremacy: before being able to aim for the trophy, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic face each other on Friday (from 2:45 p.m. on RTS 2) in the semi-finals at Roland-Garros, for the first time in Grand Slam.
The keys to the meeting between the Spaniard world no.1 and the Serbian no.3:
The look
Alcaraz has for him the youth of his 20 years. Opposite, Djokovic displays the weight of his 36 years. “I feel good, I’m full of confidence, physically, tennis, mentally, I’m very well and I play great tennis“Alcaraz cried.
“He puts a lot of intensity on the court. He reminds me of someone, from the same country, who also plays left-handed“, comments Djokovic with humor in reference to the master of Roland-Garros Rafael Nadal, absent this year through injury.
Alcaraz believes that Djokovic, “physically he is a rock“. A rock, or a rubber man capable of the most extreme extensions. However, since the start of the season, Djokovic’s body has shown flaws: a thigh tear in Australia which did not prevent him from win the tournament and equal the record of 22 Grand Slam titles set before him by Nadal, as well as a right arm injury he has dragged down since the start of the clay-court season in April in Monte Carlo.
But the Serb has proven his ability to overcome pain and injury in major tournaments. “Physically, Novak is a genius. But Carlos’ speed on the court might be a bit too high for him.“, predicts three-time tournament winner and Eurosport consultant Mats Wilander.
Tennis
In 2023, Alcaraz has won more matches on clay than anyone else (25 out of 27 played) and comes to Paris with 3 titles on this surface: Buenos Aires, Barcelona, and above all Madrid. And his analysis following dispatching Stefanos Tsitsipas (ATP 5) in the quarter-finals is enough to worry any opponent.
Djokovic, he gave up his first set of the tournament in the quarterfinals once morest Karen Khachanov (ATP 11). The Serb has had no convincing results on clay this season, stopping at best in the quarter-finals in Rome. But Khachanov explained the difficulty of playing once morest him: “he’s always trying to find a way to get the upper hand, he’s changing his game, he’s moving forward, he’s falling back, he’s defending, and it always feels like you have to play an extra ball“.
“I will have to hold the rhythm that he will print at each point. He’s played millions of games and we’ve all seen him achieve invincibility“, recalls Alcaraz.
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