Novak Djokovic just witnessed the future of tennis.
It’s younger, better, faster, stronger.
And it’s personified in the form of 21-year-old Spaniard Carlos Alcaraz.
If the 2023 Wimbledon men’s singles final was the breakout moment for the Spaniard, when he broke Djokovic mentally in a five-set epic, then the 2024 rematch was the moment he solidified himself as the future of the sport.
The final was not fitting of the moment. It was a 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (7/4) rout.
It was the type of hammering Djokovic has rarely received. And certainly not in more recent years.
For Alcaraz, though, it was something else.
A coronation.
He now has four slam titles on all surfaces at the age of 21, as he became the youngest male to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year.
He also has never lost a grand slam final.
At the same age, Djokovic had one slam title, Roger Federer zero and Rafael Nadal three.
Alcaraz has paced them all.
And while the dirt is barely covering the grave of Nadal’s career, this super Spaniard lays siege to a future where right now he has no equal.
Alcaraz is totally fearless
Never was that more apparent than in this Wimbledon final.
From the start, it was Djokovic who was in unfamiliar territory and on the back foot.
It wasn’t even from the opening service game, it was from the coin toss.
Alcaraz won it and chose to receive.
Potential late-set pressure be damned. The third-seeded Spaniard was out to make a statement.
When he broke Djokovic on the fifth attempt of the first game — after the Serbian repeatedly served his way out of trouble — he had done just that.
What followed was the kind of remorseless pummelling usually reserved for punch-drunk former world boxing champions desperate for one last shot at glory, not the man many regard as the greatest to ever play tennis.
Despite being 37, Djokovic still has plenty to offer.
While Djokovic struggled in his opening service game, Alcaraz, clearly filled with adrenaline, jacked a serve up to 218kph.
It didn’t come back.
That was telling and became a theme.
Djokovic, regarded as one of the greatest ralliers the sport has ever seen, could barely get the ball back, as he was pulled to all corners of the court, struggling to stay in points.
The Serb was so desperate that he infrequently engaged in the long baseline rallies that have been a hallmark of his career, instead frequently attacking the net.
Alcaraz routinely and repeatedly passed him with ease.
When that didn’t happen, the Spaniard dominated on serve and from the back of the court. His vaunted forehand, athleticism and spectacular array of drop shots doing the damage.
He made Djokovic look sluggish, second rate and every bit 16 years his senior.
Those who love Djokovic will point to the near miracle of him even playing this tournament after knee surgery as a reason he could not match the Spaniard.
It was a heroic effort to be there.
But the reality is this has been coming for a while.
Djoker’s decline
Jannik Sinner ended Djokovic’s Australian Open winning streak at 33 matches in the semifinals, taking the title at Melbourne Park for his maiden Grand Slam victory.
At the time Djokovic described it as one of his lowest moments at a slam.
“I was, in a way, shocked with my level, you know, in a bad way,” Djokovic said at the time, while congratulating Sinner.
“There was not much I was doing right in the first two sets.
“I guess this is one of the worst grand slam matches I’ve ever played. At least that I remember.”
Djokovic may hold the all-time record of 24 men’s grand slam singles titles but in 2024 there have been many lower moments.
The loss to Sinner was the tip of the iceberg in a year where Djokovic has not won a tournament.
Losses to 20-year-old Italian Luca Nardi at Indian Wells, Casper Ruud in Monaco, Chile’s Alejandro Tabilo in Rome, and Czech Tomas Machac in Geneva led into this Wimbledon.
All are serviceable players but only Ruud is considered a star, and in reality, is only a slam-level threat on clay.
Then there came the loss to Alcaraz. It was brutal.
Djokovic, who was all fire and bluster as he obliterated a frame in disgust during their 2023 decider, was meek on court in 2024.
He looked forlorn as Alcaraz destroyed him.
The mood post-match was one of rare acceptance.
“Overall the way I felt on the court today against him, I was inferior on the court,” Djokovic said.
“He was a better player. He played every single shot better than I did.”
Aiming for what Djokovic cherishes most
For Djokovic that should be the warning that the end of his glorious run atop the sport is nigh.
Two years ago he took the best Nick Kyrgios could muster and beat the Australian in the Wimbledon final, against Alcaraz he was a mere portion of that player.
Djokovic has over time been lauded and derided in equal parts for his unwavering and relentless quest to be remembered as the greatest player in tennis history, but he may have just lost to the one man who can beat his grand slam record.
Alcaraz has time and he is hungry.
When he won the first set of the final he roared and possibly deliberately, bared his teeth.
Then after his crowning moment with the title, the Spaniard did it verbally.
“At the end of my career, I want to sit at the same table as the big guys,” Alcaraz said.
“That’s my main goal. That’s my dream right now. It doesn’t matter if I already won four grand slams at the age of 21. If I don’t keep going, all these tournaments for me, it doesn’t matter.
“I really want to keep going. I will try to keep winning and end my career with a lot of them.”
Djokovic and the tennis world are on notice.
The future is now.
It’s Alcaraz’s world and Djokovic is just living in it.
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