Carlos Alcaraz Debunks ‘Change of Guard’ Moment as He Downplays Own Glory to Hype Rival Novak Djokovic

Carlos Alcaraz is humble despite the glory he achieved recently. Days after winning the 2024 Roland Garros, he bagged his second Wimbledon, making a firm space beside legends like Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic. Alcaraz’s sheer brilliance surely makes him a true legacy bearer of the Big Three, but the Spaniard would likely disagree. The 2024 Wimbledon champion still believes Novak Djokovic to be a big threat.

Despite defeating the Serb by 6-2, 6-2, 7(7)-6(4), the Spaniard is not over the fear of Djokovic’s wrath in the future. In a recent interview with Marca, Alcaraz was asked whether he believes in the start of the “Alcaraz Era.” Mentioning Djokovic’s competitiveness, Alcaraz said, “I don’t know, I don’t know. I don’t think there’s a change of era, a changing of the guard. We all know what a good player and how ambitious Djokovic is. I’m sure that after this defeat he’s going to train even harder and become a better player.” 

Remembering Djokovic’s return in the Cincinnati Open and the US Open after losing to Alcaraz in the 2023 Wimbledon, the Spaniard further said, “We all know what Novak is capable of and now the Olympic Games are coming and we’ll see.” Djokovic managed to steal the 2023 Cincinnati Open from Alcaraz and won his historic 24th slam against Daniil Medvedev in the 2023 US Open.

Given that he will play for Serbia in the Paris Olympics, his record tells that he will come back stronger and better than before. Relying on this, though, Alcaraz wished “to train hard so that this type of situation doesn’t happen again and that Djokovic doesn’t beat us again. Honestly, I don’t see a changing of the guard,” he concluded.

Alcaraz’s statement revealed that he is not overconfident about his future matches against the Serbinator. Djokovic is still reaching the final stages of most tournaments he plays, and a player would be foolish to underestimate his ability. The Spaniard has defeated him twice in the Wimbledon finals. In their six overall meetings, Alcaraz won three matches, making it equal to the Serbian legend.

However, his post-victory statements again proved that he had not removed Djokovic from his list of threats. Along with understanding the threat of the Serb, Alcaraz continues to admire his ability in the sport, as he claimed after his straight-set victory.

Carlos Alcaraz hails Novak Djokovic as “Superman” post Wimbledon finals

After winning Wimbledon twice consecutively, Carlos Alcaraz became the sixth player in the Open Era to win the Channel Slam, winning the French Open and the Wimbledon in the same year. Before him, the legends who achieved this feat were Rod Laver, Bjorn Borg, Nadal, Federer, and Djokovic. “I’m really proud and really happy. I am just building my path and my career. Obviously, I consider champions to be the big guys who have won 14, 15, 20 Grand Slams. Those guys who are eating at the big table. I want to be there one day.”

He further complimented Djokovic for reaching finals only 38 days after his knee surgery and said, “I’m still believing that Novak is Superman because what he has done this tournament with a surgery just a few weeks before the tournament began. It is amazing, I beat him today, but for me, Novak is still like a Superman.”

Alcaraz’s take on Novak Djokovic’s brilliance shows the respect he carries despite his dominance. Alcaraz’s grounded and humble mentality is the recipe for a future legend, but it will be a long journey to see him change.