London: The 24-time Grand Slam winner Novak Djokovic of Serbia will take on Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz with revenge uppermost on his mind in a rematch of 2023 final in another blockbuster summit clash at Wimbledon 2024.
Twelve months ago, Alcaraz lit up the Centre Court where he earned a thrilling five-set victory against the Serbian to clinch his first Wimbledon title and end Djokovic’s run of dominance in west London. Alcaraz defeated Djokovic 1–6, 7–6(6), 6–1, 3–6, 6–4 in last year’s final.
With his four-hour, 42-minute win, the 21-year-old became just the fourth active male player to lift the trophy at Wimbledon after Rafael Nadal, Andy Murray, and Djokovic, who won four consecutive titles at the grass-court major from 2018-2022.
By advancing to the championship match again in 2024, Alcaraz has become just the fourth man in the Open Era to reach multiple Wimbledon finals aged 21 and under. The Spaniard has never lost a Grand Slam final (3-0) and last month at Roland Garros he became the youngest player in the Open Era to win a major on all three surfaces.
If the third seed overcomes Djokovic on the Centre Court on Sunday afternoon, he will become just the sixth man to achieve the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double, joining Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Nadal, Federer and Djokovic.
Before the start of Wimbledon 2024, a lot of people had expected Djokovic and Alcaraz to clash in the final. Former India legend Vijay Amritraj was one of those who had expected it to be a rematch of Wimbledon 2023 in the final.
However, he does not expect Sunday’s summit clash to be an epic like the 2023 final.
“Could it be a final like we saw last year? I don’t know. That final was absolutely magnificent. Came down to one point in that fifth set where Djokovic missed an overhead and the chance to go up a break of serve in the fifth,” said Amritraj.
On Sunday, Djokovic will seek revenge against Alcaraz and aim to equal Roger Federer’s record eight trophies at The All England Club. If he wins the title, the 37-year-old will become the oldest champion in tournament history and move to a record-extending 25 majors.
Djokovic is relishing the opportunity to test himself against Alcaraz again on the biggest stage.
Djokovic takes a 3-2 ATP head-to-head series into their final clash, with little to separate them. The second seed, who is chasing his first title of the season, arrived at Wimbledon having undergone knee surgery in early June. The former No. 1 in the ATP Rankings has moved well throughout the event, dropping just two sets en route to his 10th Wimbledon final.
Alcaraz’s game is no replica of Djokovic’s. But in last year’s final, the Spaniard showed similar traits. Djokovic has spoken about the mental edge he owns over most opponents because of what he has achieved. But in the same way, the 37-year-old had no fear of Federer and Nadal when he was on the rise, Alcaraz did not shy away from the challenge of going blow for blow with the seven-time Wimbledon champion. It did not matter that it was just the fourth grass-court tournament of his career.
So often, the 98-time tour-level titlist has escaped inescapable positions in matches by finding a way to win the biggest points, giving himself a shot to find his best tennis later in the match. Alcaraz essentially beat Djokovic by playing his game that day on Centre Court and in doing so, pierced the Serbian’s aura of invincibility.
Djokovic will be competing in his 37th major final and has experience on his side. However, the Serbian knows more than anyone about the task of trying to defeat No. 3 in the ATP Rankings Alcaraz.
The Serb will be hoping that he will be second-time lucky against Alcaraz at Wimbledon. The Spaniard, on the other hand, will be hoping to build on his legacy.
(IANS)
