Novak Djokovic Offers Honest Assessment of Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner After Crashing Out of US Open: 'Best in the World'

Alas, Novak Djokovic once again couldn’t cross the penultimate hurdle in this year’s Grand Slam tournaments. In front of the roaring fans at Arthur Ashe Stadium and in a highly engrossing semifinal held on Friday (September 5), Carlos Alcaraz took his revenge 6-4, 7-6(4), 6-2 to book his spot in the final of the US Open.

To summarize Djokovic’s Grand Slam campaigns this year, injuries, and Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner became the reasons behind his exit after reaching the semifinals. Earlier this year, Djokovic ended Alcaraz’s Australian Open run with a four-set defeat in the quarterfinals to clinch his second straight win as the Serb also beat the Spaniard to win the gold medal at the Paris Olympics last year.

In the New York final, Alcaraz has set up his third straight Grand Slam final clash with Sinner. Since Djokovic’s 24th Major win at the 2023 US Open, no player other than these two youngsters has emerged victorious in Majors, winning the last seven titles (the tally will be eight on Sunday).

These two guys are the best in the world right now. We have to adapt to that, but they have a very good team and strategy, as evidenced by their results. It’s not surprising everything they are achieving, and they will continue to improve year after year. If I have to lose to someone, I want it to be against them. It’s frustrating not being able to do on the court everything I could do before, but it’s normal and comes with age.

Novak Djokovic said at the press conference

Alcaraz has improved his head-to-head record to 4-5 against Djokovic and will have a win-loss record of 10-5 over Sinner if he beats the World No.1 in the final. The No.1 ranking is on the line, with second-ranked Alcaraz already reaching the top in live rankings after his six successful campaigns and three more appearances in finals this year.

The last title came to him without much effort as the four-time Grand Slam champion gave him a walkover due to sickness in the final of the Cincinnati Masters. Sinner and Alcaraz are tied at 1-1 in Grand Slam finals, with the latter defending his French Open title and the 24-year-old taking his revenge in the Wimbledon final.

Tim Henman on whether Novak Djokovic will play at the US Open again

What’s next for Novak Djokovic? It’s uncertain where he will play next, but the Shanghai Masters is expected to be his next tournament. Last year in Shanghai, Djokovic lost to Jannik Sinner.