Novak Djokovic vs. Carlos Alcaraz Wimbledon final preview: Let’s see who’s hungrier

What Does Carlos Alcaraz Admire About Novak Djokovic? He's A Physical & Mental "Beast"

Carlos Alcaraz vs. Novak Djokovic

“He’s hungry, I’m hungry, too, so let’s have a feast.”

No, Novak Djokovic wasn’t talking about the post-match barbecue he might have been throwing after his semifinal win on Friday at Wimbledon. He was talking about the final he’ll play with Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday.

He also might have been addressing tennis fans around the world—this will be a feast for us. No. 1 vs. No. 2. The prodigy vs. the master. Alcaraz and Djokovic have played twice before. The first match, won by Alcaraz in Madrid in 2022, was a down-to-the-wire classic. The second, won by Djokovic at Roland Garros last month, might have been even better, except that Alcaraz cramped at one-set all. So expectations are high for a dynamic and competitive contest in round three.

Alcaraz is the higher seed, but Djokovic is the favorite, for two reasons.

The first is that he’s a seven-time Wimbledon champion and hasn’t lost a match on Centre Court since Andy Murray beat him in the 2013 final—which feels like an era ago. Alcaraz, by contrast, has played just a handful of grass-court events, and while he has obviously proven to be a quick learner, this will be his first Wimbledon final. The 20-year-old’s pedigree on the surface can’t begin to match Djokovic’s. For starters, Djokovic faced one of the best grass-courters ever, Roger Federer, four times on this court and came out the winner in three of those matches.

The second and probably more important reason is that Alcaraz has admitted that playing Djokovic makes him nervous. It was the main reason he gave for the cramps that cut their Roland Garros battle short. Even after winning at Queen’s Club, Alcaraz downplayed his chances at Wimbledon a bit by saying, “Novak is coming.” So for Alcaraz, playing Djokovic means starting with a little less self-belief, and little more anxiety, than he does against anyone else.

Alcaraz says he’ll try to come out in a different frame of mind than he did in Paris.

“I’ll try to get into the court with not as much nerves as I probably had in French Open, in the semifinal,” Alcaraz said. “I don’t know what I’m going to do, but I’ll do some exercise to stay calm and to forget—or I’ll try to forget that I’m going to play a final against Novak.”

By the end of his press conference, though, he was back to making Djokovic sound unbeatable.

“He does nothing wrong on the court,” Alcaraz said. “Physically he’s a beast. Mentally he’s a beast. Everything is unbelievable for him.”

When it comes to Grand Slam finals, though, Djokovic doesn’t always come out in beast mode. In his last two final-round wins here, over Nick Kyrgios and Matteo Berrettini, he lost the first set before winning in four. In the Roland Garros final against Casper Ruud this year, Djokovic struggled physically in the opening set before gathering strength.

But I’m not sure that will be in the cards when he faces a player of Alcaraz's abilities. Djokovic took the initiative against him right away in Paris, and I’m guessing that’s what he’ll try to do in this final as well, to jump on him early and bring his doubts to the surface. It will be up to Alcaraz to rise above them.

Let’s see who’s hungrier. Winner: Djokovic