If Alcaraz (Spain, 21 years, 3 ATP) is on a high, on the other hand, for Novak Djokovic (Serbia, 37 years, 2 ATP), defeated without the right to appeal in the Wimbledon final (2-6, 2 -6, 6-7), exit to “pension” seems closer than ever.
Novak Djokovic is going through a disappointing 2024. PHOTO: Facebook
First, until Sunday’s defeat, Nole had not lost so clearly in a Grand Slam final in two and a half years. At the 2022 French Open, Nadal beat him even worse than Alcaraz now at Wimbledon: 6-3, 6-3, 6-0. Then, the current season shows Nole’s downfall: without a single trophy won, and worse, without a single win against a Top 10 opponent!
Seeing this situation, Italian Adriano Panatta (74 years old), champion at the 1976 French Open, made a gloomy prediction for Nole, according to gsp.ro: ” Djokovic? He will never defeat either Alcaraz or Sinner again“. And the numbers prove Panatta right: Djokovic’s last three encounters with Carlos and Jannik have been won by top players from the new wave.
Realistically, even the 37-year-old Serbian admitted that, at the moment, he still has a lot of work to do to be competitive against world-class opponents. “To have a chance to beat these guys in the Grand Slam finals or the Olympics I’m going to have to play a lot better than I did at Wimbledon. There, in the final, I met the best player in the world at the moment, along with Jannik Sinner. Both are by far the best this year…I feel like they’re not at that level. However, my current form is not something I have never experienced before in my life. Usually, in such difficult times, I rise, learn and become stronger. That’s what I’m going to do now“, said Djokovic, according to Eurosport.
Easy to say, hard to do in the context of increasing medical problems. Nole played at Wimbledon, almost miraculously, six weeks after knee surgery. And, at 37 years old as he is, we realize, once again, that no one has won the battle with time.
