Alcaraz’s battery recharge and Djokovic’s future plans. What were the highlights of the past week?

Last week brought another record broken by Novak Djokovic. On the other hand, sports fans were not expecting another duel between Alcaraz and the Serbian legend. And this duel will not please tennis fans next week in the Davis Cup either. Both tennis players revealed their plans for the near and distant future.

Novak Djokovic won his 24th Grand Slam title. He is the oldest player in history to win the US Open. Part of the surprise was that he did not face his biggest rival on the ATP circuit, Carlos Alcaraz, in the final.

He finished a round earlier on the racket of Russia’s Medvedev. Alcaraz thus failed to defend his triumph at the US Open. That’s the last time Roger Federer did that, by the way.

Soon after, the Spanish tennis player revealed his plans for the coming days. But he didn’t make most fans too happy.

Alcaraz’s next schedule

The 20-year-old Spaniard is having a great season. Out of 67 matches played, he has only gone undefeated seven times. He has the Wimbledon title and has dominated five other tennis events.

The number of matches he has played is very high indeed. Moreover, it must be taken into account that he has managed this batch since the second half of February. Just a few days after the end of the US Open, he was supposed to represent Spain in the Davis Cup.

That will not happen. Alcaraz said he needed to recharge his batteries. To rest mentally and physically. And given the above, it’s no wonder.

So the tennis public must wait for his next clash with Djokovic, whose Serbia will be one of the opponents of the Spanish tennis players. The Czech Republic is also part of this final group, the chances of Lehecka and co. to advance have increased a bit with this fact.

Djokovic (un)revealed his plans

The fresh US Open winner also commented on the more distant future. However, a little less clearly, in a “Djoker-esque” way. There were also mentions of another 25 years on the circuit.

One thing is clear, Djokovic is definitely not thinking about a date to end his career. Grand Slams remain his priority, as well as the Olympics. The Serbian doesn’t set any benchmark, the number of titles he would like to achieve.

His coach Goran Ivanisevic mentioned the Los Angeles Olympics in hyperbole. It will be held in 2028. One thing is clear, Djokovic’s participation cannot be ruled out.

Finally..

They say that you should finish in the best way, but it is difficult and in Djokovic’s case it would be premature. His battles with the upcoming generation could still bring many interesting things. Likewise, there are a lot of records hanging in the air that the Serbian tennis player can attack.

Alcaraz is the first of the young players to do so. It’s a good thing that he’s allowing himself a slight slowdown now. After all, the 2023 tennis season will culminate in two months with the Tournament of Champions in Italy.

Source: Tennismajors, Reuters