In the wake of their fierce fight, Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz delivered their analyzes at a press conference this Tuesday in Melbourne.
Novak Djokovic said to himself “concerned» by the injury to the left thigh that occurred during his quarter-final of the Australian Open against Carlos Alcaraz (3rd in the world) whom he ended up beating on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday.
«I'll be honest, I'm concerned», Declared the former world No.1 at a press conference. At the end of the first set, after being broken in the ninth game, Djokovic requested a medical timeout and left the court for a few minutes, obviously injured in the left thigh. “During the downtime, the doctor strapped me up (applied a bandage, Editor's note) and gave me painkillers. They took effect after 20-30 minutes.», said Djokovic who won in four sets. “I should assess the situation tomorrow (Wednesday) when I wake up, I will probably skip training tomorrow“, said the Serb.
“A battle of crazy intensity”
Without going into the “details“, the ten-time winner of the Australian Open explained that the injury he suffered was “very similar» to that «on the hamstrings» which had handicapped him two years ago, without preventing him from winning his tenth title in Melbourne. Friday’s semi-final against Alexander Zverev (2nd) “is clearly going to be a challenge, in every way».
«The extra day off comes at just the right time», rejoiced Djokovic who will benefit – like his opponent – from two days of recovery before his half, compared to just one in the previous rounds. The match against Alcaraz, lasting more than 3h30, “exhausted us both, it was a battle of crazy intensity. I hope to be physically able to move freely and be ready to play five sets» if necessary, concluded Djokovic, in search of a record 25th Grand Slam title in Melbourne.
-Alcaraz regrets “a big mistake”
Defeated, the 3rd in the world Carlos Alcaraz regretted having “let back» in the match Novak Djokovic, after winning the 1st set. “Honestly, I felt like I was in control of the match and let him get back into the game», lamented the Spaniard after his defeat 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4. “This is the biggest mistake I've ever made“, he said at a press conference.
«In the second set, I should have played a little better, pushed him a little more to his limits. And I didn't do it. Afterwards he started feeling better and played at such a high level», Said Alcaraz, who was in search of the only Grand Slam title missing from his record in Melbourne. “When Novak plays at such a level, it's very difficult» to beat him, admitted the Spaniard. “It was a very close match, I had chances. But he won most of the crucial points“, he stressed.
Despite his defeat, Alcaraz was delighted with the “experience» brought by this type of matches against the «greatest in the history of our sport». «I leave Australia with my head held high“, he concluded.
