By Tony Fairbairn At Wimbledon
- Carlos Alcaraz [1] v Novak Djokovic [2]
- H2H: Tied at 1-1
LONDON, ENGLAND – Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will battle for history as the Wimbledon title and the world number one ranking is on the line.
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Carlos Alcaraz [1] v Novak Djokovic [2] H2H & Match Fundamentals
Carlos Alcaraz is into a first Wimbledon final after defeating Daniil Medvedev in a clinical performance as the Spaniard became the youngest Men’s singles finalist at Wimbledon since Rafael Nadal in 2006. Now Alcaraz will look for more history in the Wimbledon final as he looks for a second Grand Slam final as he aims to retain his world number one ranking. Standing in his way is Novak Djokovic who won his 45th consecutive Centre Court match against Jannik Sinner to reach a record-breaking 35th Grand Slam final as he looks to retain his Wimbledon title in the final.
| Carlos Alcaraz [1] v Novak Djokovic [2] | H2H: Tied at 1-1 |
| Wimbledon 2023 | London, England |
| Grass (O) | Prize Money: £1,175,000/£2,350,000 |
| First on Centre Court (14:00 BST) | BBC Sport |
Both players have overcame tough matches mid-way through the tournament in what has been a very clinical fortnight from both players as the dream final that everybody wanted is set.
Carlos Alcaraz [1] route to the final
- R1: Jeremy Chardy 6-0 6-2 7-5
- R2: Alexandre Muller 6-4 7-6(2) 6-3
- R3: Nicolas Jarry [25] 6-3 6-7(6) 6-3 7-5
- R4: Matteo Berrettini 3-6 6-3 6-3 6-3
- QF: Holger Rune [6] 7-6(3) 6-4 6-4
- SF: Daniil Medvedev [3] 6-3 6-3 6-3
Novak Djokovic [2] route to the final
- R1: Pedro Cachin 6-3 6-3 7-6(4)
- R2: Jordan Thompson 6-3 7-6(4) 7-5
- R3: Stan Wawrinka 6-3 6-1 7-6(5)
- R4: Hubert Hurkacz [17] 7-6(6) 7-6(6) 5-7 6-4
- QF: Andrey Rublev [7] 4-6 6-1 6-4 6-3
- SF: Jannik Sinner [8] 6-3 6-4 7-6(4)
Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2023 – Grass)
| H2H: | Carlos Alcaraz (WR 1) | Novak Djokovic (WR 2) |
| Tournament Previous Best | R4 (2022) | Champion (2011, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) |
| 1st Serve % | 64.5 | 64.8 |
| Service Games Won % | 92.3 | 97.1 |
| Break Points Saved % | 74.5 | 84.2 |
| 2nd Serve Return Points Won % | 54 | 51.4 |
| Break Points Converted % | 36.6 | 33.3 |
Djokovic has been far dominant on serve while Alcaraz has been slightly more efficient on return which means this match is perfectly set-up for a classic Wimbledon final.
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Playing Styles and Prediction
Alcaraz produced another clinical display to reach his first Wimbledon final, becoming the youngest Men’s singles finalist for 17 years. Now Alcaraz looks to do the unthinkable and beat Djokovic in a Wimbledon final as he looks to create history as well as retaining his world number one.
Speaking after the win over Medvedev, Alcaraz said that the final will be one of the best moments of his career.
“Probably is going to be, I mean, the best moment of my life,” Alcaraz explained in his press conference.
“Playing a final here in Wimbledon is something that I dream about when I start playing tennis. As I said before, it’s even better playing against Novak. It’s going to be a really emotional moment for me.
“But I’ll try to stay calm in that moment. For Novak is one more day, one more moment. For me, it’s going to be the best moment of my life I think. I always like play on grass. Probably after this year even more.”
In the final Alcaraz will have to climb Mount Everest when he takes on Djokovic who is into a record-breaking 35th Grand Slam final after clinical tennis saw him easily take care of Sinner.
Now Djokovic will look to tie Roger Federer for most Wimbledon titles as he looks for an eighth Wimbledon title and a 24th Grand Slam title. After his semi-final, Djokovic dismissed the fact that experience will be the deciding factor on Sunday and said that Grand Slams are the highest priority for him.
“Well, it’s no secret that Grand Slams are the highest priority for me, the highest goals on my priority list,” Djokovic explained.
“Every time I start the season, I want to peak at these four tournaments. I try to organize my schedule, training schedule, and my preparation weeks, and all the tournaments, according to these priorities. But for me, I feel that the job is not finished until I lift the trophy – hopefully – and play in the finals of a Grand Slam. I put myself, again, in that position. Of course, I’m very thrilled.
“Well, I can speak on my own behalf and my matches. I obviously have more experience than most of these guys that I faced here, and that I will face on Sunday, as well. Experience, yeah, could help a little bit I think maybe in some important moments, beginning the match, managing the nerves, managing the occasion, circumstances. Yeah, that’s where experience could play a role.
“But it’s not going to be the deciding factor really. It’s not going to affect that much on the game itself. So whoever on a given day is in a better state, I mean, mentally and physically, will be the winner.”
Alcaraz will look to keep his nerves in check as he will look to improve his first serve percentage and take advantage of his efficient returning. Meanwhile Djokovic will look to raise his level on return as is his efficiency on break points hasn’t been up to usual standard with the Serb hoping to maintain a high level on serve.
Both players are in confident form and it has all the makings of a classic final with the drop shot and aggression at the net being some of the key factors that will decide the match. In the end, it’s hard to go against Djokovic’s Wimbledon winning streak although it will receive its toughest test yet.
Prediction: Djokovic in five sets.
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