Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz reflect on Cincinnati Masters epic
- Doug Mattushek
- 22 August 2023
The 2023 Cincinnati Masters final will go down in history as one of the most riveting three-set finals ever.
The indomitable Djokovic exacted revenge for his Wimbledon finals loss in a near four-hour epic in Cincinnati on Sunday, overcoming the young pretender in a match for the ages.
The Serb rallied from 7-5 4-2 down in the second set, even saving a championship point in the ensuing tiebreaker to force a final set. With momentum shifting, Alcaraz then saved no less than four championship points on the way to another tiebreaker.
An imperious Djokovic arguably saved his best tennis for last, winning the final tiebreaker to claim his record 39th ATP Masters 1000 title.
"I was tight, no doubt about it," Djokovic told
atptour.com after the match.
"When you're facing one of the best players in the world, one of the biggest tournaments in the world, of course you can't always feel completely free in your mind to do whatever you want to do, right?
"You're going to experience those kind of moments where you're going to drop with the concentration, energy, whatever it is. You just have to try to work your way out from that situation. Overall an incredible match with some really highs and really lows.:"
Djokovic heaped praise on Alcaraz, comparing him to long-time rival and fellow legend, Rafael Nadal.
"You just have to put your hats down to a guy like that, who plays so maturely, handles the pressure so well for a 20-year-old," he added.
"We cannot forget how young he is. That's something that is so impressive about him. The feeling that I have on the court reminds me a little bit when I was facing Nadal when we were at our prime of our careers. Each point is a hustle. Each point is a battle.
"Amazing to be able to experience that with him on the court. It just keeps getting better for the fans. For us, I don't know if we are enjoying it so much. It's definitely a challenge that we both need to embrace and accept because that's what's required from both of us in order to win big titles."
As for Alcaraz, he was proud of his relentless effort. The Spaniard's supreme athleticism was on show until the very last shot on the hard courts of Ohio.
"I feel proud of myself, honestly," said the two-time grand slam player.
"I [was] talking and I don't know why I was crying because I fought until the last ball. I almost beat one of the greatest of all time from our sport, It's crazy to talk about it right now, but I left the court really, really happy [with] what I did.
"For me, it's great to hear that things from Novak, [who] has played iconic matches, storied matches. He said some matches against me were [some] of the toughest that he has played, it's great. That means that my team and myself, we are doing the great work, we are in a good path. [Because of] matches like this one, we know that we have to still work in the same way that we are doing."
The match could be a dress rehearsal for the upcoming US Open, where the two rivals will very likely be on opposite sides of the draw as Alcaraz set out on his first grand slam title defence.
