Carlos Alcaraz acknowledges Novak Djokovic's greatness ahead of Madrid meeting



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Carlos Alcaraz acknowledges Novak Djokovic's greatness ahead of Madrid meeting

Spanish tennis star Carlos Alcaraz acknowledged the greatness of Novak Djokovic ahead of their first meeting. Alcaraz, 19, defeated his idol Rafael Nadal 6-2 1-6 6-3 to reach his maiden Madrid semifinal. Alcaraz now gets a shot at another tennis legend as he is set to face next world No.

1 Djokovic. Alcaraz has no previous meetings versus Djokovic and he is extremely excited to finally get a chance to play the 20-time Grand Slam champion. “One of the best players in history. All that he achieved is incredible.

But I’m here. It’s my first time facing him but not my first time playing a big M1000 match in a big stadium so I’m gonna enter the match the same way I did today," Alcaraz said, per Jose Morgado.

Alcaraz beat Nadal in front of the Spanish King

As expected, the Alcaraz and Nadal match drew lots of attention. Celebrities and regular fans who paid the ticket for the match certainly enjoyed it as Alcaraz clinched his first win over Nadal.

“Never easy to play in front of the King but I tried not to think much about it. The coolest part about it is that all these people know me," Alcaraz admitted.

After easily winning the first set, Alcaraz's level dropped in the second set. Alcaraz then showed a great mental strength as he bounced back from losing the second set and beat Nadal 6-2 1-6 6-3.

“I always think that in the toughest moments you have to go for it. For a big serve, to the net. If I miss it at least I went for it," Alcaraz noted.

Djokovic struggled in his first few tournaments of the season but he has looked well in Madrid so far.

Djokovic didn't drop a set en route to reaching the Madrid semifinal. However, it should be noted that he had a first round bye and Andy Murray gave him a walkover in the round-of-16.

Carlos Alcaraz Novak Djokovic