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World No. 1 Novak Djokovic failed to reach the Madrid Masters final but renowned tennis coach Patrick Mouratoglou says the Serb is back, just in time for the French Open. After struggling in his first few tournaments of the year, Djokovic performed much better in Madrid.
After beating Gael Monfils and Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets, Djokovic suffered a tight three-set defeat to Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinal. Even though Djokovic lost, he competed at a high level versus Alcaraz. In the end, Alcaraz escaped with a narrow 6-7 (5) 7-5 7-6 (5) win.
Alcaraz beat Rafael Nadal on Friday and he is playing at an extremely high level. "Novak is back. Not only his game is, but also his focus and mental strength. High level performance so far against the incredible Carlos Alcaraz," Mouratoglou tweeted during the match.
Novak is back. Not only his game is, but also his focus and mental strength. High level performance so far against the incredible @alcarazcarlos03 — Patrick Mouratoglou (@pmouratoglou) May 7, 2022
Alcaraz beat Djokovic in a thriller
Djokovic had a shot at clinching a straight-set win but failed to convert on his chances.
In the ninth game of the second set, Djokovic missed out on two break points that could have given him a 7-6 (5) 5-4 lead and a chance to serve out for the match. Djokovic failed to convert two break points in the ninth game and also missed out on a break point in the 11th game.
Djokovic got broken in the 12th game as Alcaraz sent the match into a decider. In the third set, Djokovic saved a match point in the 10th game and one more in the tie-break but couldn't save the third as Alcaraz sealed a three-set win.
“I don’t know what the difference [between us] was," Alcaraz said after the first-ever meeting versus Djokovic. "It was so close. He had the chances to break my serve at the end of the second set. In the first set as well it was so close in the tie-break.
Honestly I don’t know what made the difference”. Djokovic now heads to Rome, where he will be hoping to make another deep run and gain more confidence ahead of the French Open.
