Carlos Alcaraz vs Novak Djokovic is the rivalry that every tennis fan wants to see these days. For the third time this season, the duo is in the same draw. They could meet each other in potential quarterfinal clash of the Miami Open.
Earlier in the season, Djokovic defeated Alcaraz in the quarterfinal of the Australian Open in a thrilling four-set contest despite having discomfort due to a hamstring injury.
“We’re on the same side of the draw, hopefully we’ll both reach the semi-finals,” he said on Wednesday during his first appearance before the media at the second Masters 1000 of the season. “As I said before, these are the matches that attract tennis fans because I think every time we play it’s fun to watch.”
Alcaraz said he is happy to attract fans to the stadiums.
“I’m very happy to be one of the players that leads people to start playing tennis and to want to watch tennis matches for the first time. That’s what I try to do, to have a style or a type of tennis that people like,” Alcaraz said. “I don’t just play for myself and for my people, I also play so that the fans are entertained. It makes me happy to be a player who contributes to tennis in that way.”
Djokovic leads Alcaraz by 5-3 in a head-to-head battle. The Spaniard said he wants to take one game at a time and not think too far ahead.
“In the end, this is a Masters 1000. There are still too many rounds to be thinking about the semis. And from the second round, there are already matches that are really fun to watch and tough to play. We’ll see what happens in the tournament on those days. Of course, if you want to win the tournament you have to beat the best players, like Djokovic. We’ll try and be in that position,” said the 2022 Miami champion.
Alcaraz showered praise on Jack Draper, who won the Indian Wells Masters. The Brit also registered a semifinal win against the Spaniard en route to his maiden ATP 1000 title.
“He’s playing great tennis at the moment. He played every point with a lot of quality. To me the most important thing is that he’s grown physically,” Alcaraz said. “That’s key for his mind because now his confidence is even higher. In Indian Wells he played great tennis. His mental level is good enough to play at the highest level throughout an entire match. I think that makes him a tough opponent.”
Alcaraz faces Goffin in Miami opener.
