Wimbledon 2023 begins on July 3. Carlos Alcaraz is raring to go

Ranking, form, age and adaptability are all on Carlos Alcaraz’s side. But the 20-year-old is short on experience. (Photo: Reuters)

Carlos Alcaraz is a bit of a showman. His match against Jannik Sinner in the US Open quarter-finals last year, which started on a Wednesday night in New York and finished in the wee hours of Thursday, lasted five hours 15 minutes.

During the course of the contest, the then 19-year-old played to the gallery, urging the crowd along often, looking up to the spectators in the stands at times. In the second set, leading 6-5, he played the kind of outrageous shot that’s typically seen played by senior pro Mansur Bahrami in exhibition matches. Having overrun Sinner’s forehand, Alcaraz leapt up and swapped the ball that was behind him while running away from it. Sinner volleyed, but speedy Alcaraz was already in place for a crosscourt winner.

During the course of this second-longest match in US Open history (Stefan Edberg and Michael Chang played a five-hour-26-minute match in 1992), Alcaraz saved a match point in the fourth set, as both players refused to relent. They slugged away relentlessly in a high-quality contest that, according to Spanish player Feliciano Lopez, looked like a table tennis match before Alcaraz prevailed.

He became the youngest US Open semi-finalist since Pete Sampras in 1990 and the youngest Grand Slam semi-finalist since Rafael Nadal in 2005 before eventually winning his first Grand Slam title. He rose rapidly into the top 10 last year after starting 2022 ranked 32.

That was then. Now, he is seeded on top at Wimbledon, starting 3 July. Last Sunday, Alcaraz won his first title on grass, at London’s Queen’s Club, which put him back on the number one spot in rankings.

“I just played 11 matches in my career on grass, so I have to get more experience, more hours,” he said after winning the title. “But obviously, after beating amazing guys, and with the level that I played, I consider myself one of the favourites to win Wimbledon.”

Ranking, form, age and adaptability are all on Alcaraz’s side. But he is short on experience, which makes for a crucial difference.

“Where I think is the challenge is that grass is so different, with moving and how the ball bounces, how you use the body and mind. Is three weeks enough to make that adjustment?” asked ESPN commentator Chris Evert.

Alcaraz has played only one tournament on grass before Wimbledon 2023, as opposed to the three he played on clay before the French Open in end May-early June. Once the French Open finishes, players have about three weeks of six tournaments on grass to acclimatize before Wimbledon.

“You typically take a few days off after the French Open and get two weeks of practice maybe (on grass). For no other surface do you need to play three weeks to prepare for a tournament because they play all year on hard (surface) and clay,” said Evert.

“Alcaraz is learning quick, if you saw him at Queen’s,” said fellow ESPN commentator John McEnroe. “Plus he is a good volleyer.”

The most anticipated rivalry building up in men’s tennis is between the 20-year-old Alcaraz and the 36-year-old Novak Djokovic. By all accounts, Wimbledon 2023 seems to be a two-man race, with the latter seen as the clear favourite.

“Novak is the main favourite to win Wimbledon, that’s obvious,” Alcaraz said after his Queen’s title. “But I will try to play at this level, to have chances to beat him. I will have chances, that’s for sure. But I see Novak as the main favourite. This is not going to change that.”

The two players have a 1-1 head-to-head record. Djokovic defeated Alcaraz in the Roland Garros semi-finals, a much-anticipated match that fizzled out in the middle after Alcaraz started cramping, which he said later was due to the stress of playing Djokovic.

The Serbian is chasing a bunch of records as he enters the All England Club this summer. If he wins this year, it would be his eighth Wimbledon title, equalling Roger Federer’s mark. Djokovic has a 86-10 win-loss record at Wimbledon, his 86 wins are more than the rest of the top-20 ranked players combined. His winning percentage is 89.6 compared to the 56.3 for the rest of the top-20.

Also, if he wins, he would become only the second male in the Open era, after Bjorn Borg and Federer, to win five consecutive titles at Wimbledon.

“Novak knows that he is mentally, emotionally stronger than any player he has played except (Rafael) Nadal,” Evert said. “He is the best five-set player, evaluates every point better and has experience on grass.”

With titles in the first two Grand Slams of the year, the Australian Open and French Open, Djokovic is once again half-way to winning all the majors in the year. He was in a similar position in 2021, when he won the first three before losing in the US Open.

In recent times, Djokovic has reduced the number of ATP events he plays, choosing to focus more instead on the majors, as he tries to prolong his playing career. Going into Wimbledon, he hasn’t played any preparatory grass court event, a testament to his confidence and experience. With 23 majors already in his bag, he could become the tennis player with most singles Grand Slam titles—only Margaret Court has more with 24.

“Novak can afford not to play any tournament. He does not feel the need to play any warmup matches,” McEnroe said.

In the post Federer-Nadal era, Djokovic continues to be the bridge that connects a previous generation of tennis greats to the next-gen of aspirants, led by Alcaraz. By all accounts, the Serbian is not ready to pass on the baton, just yet.