Did Carlos Alcaraz give Novak Djokovic a free run at the gold medal match in Paris? Well, we all saw how both of them were emotionally involved in the match as we saw tears in their eyes. Although one shed tears of joy, the other cried out of disappointment! After the historic match in Paris, they met each other at a charity exhibition match ahead of the US Open. Since playing the doubles clash against Alcaraz, the Serb recalled those moments from Paris, saying it was nice of Alcaraz to let him win the gold medal. Have the mind games commenced?

In a charity match named, ‘Stars of the Open,’ we saw Djokovic partnering with the American tennis legend, John McEnroe to face Alcaraz and Andre Agassi in that doubles event. Djokovic and McEnroe defeated the other duo in style. Shortly after the match, he gave an on-court interview, during which, he recalled the “biggest sporting success” of his career. Nole joked, “I told Carlos at the net when we finished the final that I was very grateful to him for letting me win the gold. He’s probably going to have like 3 gold medals before he retires.“

We saw how Alcaraz was literally shattered after the loss, he felt perhaps he had let the “Spanish people down.” The 21-year-old felt his countrymen were waiting for him to bring home the gold medal. Seeing him cry, Djokovic later on consoled him and also put up a tweet stating, “Another epic final, @carlosalcaraz. El Clasico. Congratulations to you and your team for an excellent Olympics. Considering your age, your energy, and the way you play, you probably have 20 more Olympics ahead of you😆. Your gold will come. Until next time, amigo.“

That was a wonderful moment in between the two and we love to see them face each other time and again, be it a final or an exhibition match. Currently, Djokovic leads their H2H with a 4-3 margin and they’re all set to compete at the 2024 US Open. Can the Serb defend his title this time or will he give Alcaraz a free run as a return gift? With this Olympic gold medal, he will be more calm and relieved from all the pressure that he had this season. So, we can expect a better result at this Slam compared to the others we had this season.

Apart from his heroics in Paris, Djokovic has struggled to win a title this year, but in the US Open, he’ll be keen to land his 25th Grand Slam title. On the other hand, Alcaraz will look to complete the Calendar Surface Slam by winning at least one major title on each surface in a calendar year. Who can seal the deal in New York? We have to wait a bit to get this answer, but till then let’s look at some of the comments by tennis legends on Djokovic’s emphatic triumph in Paris.

“Biggest achievement” – Former ATP pro heaps praise on Novak Djokovic’s incredible performance at the Paris Olympics

Djokovic had waited for almost 21 years to bring home this gold medal for his nation. We saw how his hands trembled when he kneeled down on the court with tears of joy running down his cheeks. What a moment it was for him and as well as his family, and teammates! His hunger and desire to succeed even at this age, after winning 24 Grand Slam titles in his career is truly admirable!

Former British player, Tim Henman reflected some of his admiration for the Serb’s incredible performance in Paris by saying, “This is where I really do take my hat off to Djokovic because the one title he was missing from his CV was the Olympic gold, and, with all due respect, I really believe Paris was his last realistic chance of winning a singles gold.” He added that winning the gold medal match against Alcaraz was perhaps the “biggest achievement” in his career.

McEnroe looked quite impressed with the Serb’s performance at the Olympics. He said, “What you’ve done for our sport, and what you just accomplished the last couple months, particularly Olympics, thank you, man, for being part of this sport.” His performance in that match, even made the Spaniards stand on their feet and hail down to the ‘Serbian King’.

Juan Martin del Potro revealed that he cried after seeing Djokovic win the gold medal. Alex Corretja said, “I feel like he created his own destiny.” Djokovic won the match against Alcaraz by 7-6(3), 7-6(2), so by looking at this margin we can clearly see how close this fight was. Truly an amazing match!