The match between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic It has final treatment, although the combination of the Serb's ranking (7th) and the draw meant that it would be in the quarterfinals, with a lot of title still to be won for whoever wins. The German could be ahead Alexander Zverev and the Italian Jannik Sinner.
The Australian Open ratified the event's 'great match' status with the program designed for today. It will have a prime time slot, at night in Melbourne Park and also suitable for Europe, mid-morning.
The tournament thus handed down its sentence with this eighth match of a series that 'Nole' dominates by 4-3, after 1-1 in 2024 with Alcaraz's victory in the Wimbledon final and Djokovic's victory in the fight for gold in Paris 2024, on the clay of Roland Garros.
It will be in the afternoon session, but in the second shift. At 9 in the morning they will open Aryna Sabalenka and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova. Then, around 11, to the center court of the Rod Laver Arena Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz.
Alcaraz, 21 years old and No. 3, challenging the ten-time tournament champion at 37. He already took the Wimbledon crown from him, now he attacks the only Grand Slam missing from his record. It is only his second appearance in the Melbourne quarterfinals, after the bad experience the previous year against Zverev. But there are no limits for those who have two Wimbledons, a Roland Garros and a US Open. If he completes the plenary session next Sunday, he would be the youngest in the history of men's tennis to do so. If he reaches the semi-finals, he will be the second U-21 to reach that qualifying round in the fours during the professional era, matching his rival this morning.
Djokovic went zero last season, maintains the record of 24 Grand Slam victories with the Australian Margaret Court. He consoled himself then by being an Olympic champion, but now he lives only for the 'greats'.
-“When the draw came out, many people were looking forward to it. Here we are, I'm looking forward to it too. Although it is great to see Alcaraz, not so much to play against him,” he said. Novak Djokovicin his 61st Grand Slam quarterfinal experience, 15th in the antipodes. “I expect a great battle, we have already had very long ones. “It reminds me of my matches against Nadal in terms of intensity and energy on the court,” he points out.
Alcaraz is cautious in his analysis because his objective would not end with this match. “It would change if it were a final, but it is not. “I'm going to prepare for the game like I did other times.”
With the experience of having many references already with a tennis legend like Djokovic. “I try not to think about everything he has achieved, if I think about everything he has done I wouldn't be able to play. 24 great ones, more weeks at number one. I think I can beat him, know my weapons. “We are going to play and believe,” he says.
Alcaraz is extremely competitive against the most difficult opponents: he has won his last five matches with top-10 Grand Slam matches. Something that Djokovic has not done since the US Open 2023.
