By Michael Cantillon at Wimbledon
Novak Djokovic conceded he was “inferior” in Sunday’s Wimbledon final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz but vowed to return to SW19 to fight another day.
For the second year in succession, Djokovic suffered defeat in a Wimbledon final to 21-year-old Alcaraz, but whereas last year was a five-set epic which could have gone either way, 2024’s finale was rather more one-sided.
Indeed, the defeat was the first time in over a decade – since Andy Murray’s 2013 Wimbledon success – that Djokovic was beaten in straight sets in a Grand Slam final on grass, going down 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-4).
“He was the better player from the beginning until the end,” Djokovic said. “You can always analyse the match, of course, and say I could have done this or that.
“Just overall the way I felt on the court today against him, I was inferior on the court. That’s it. He was a better player. He played every single shot better than I did.
“I tried to fight my way in the third and come back, saving three match points, extending the match a little bit. But I guess it was inevitable for him to win today because he was just coming out on the court with a better quality tennis. It’s as simple as that.
“I don’t think I could have done much more. I’ve never seen him serve that fast. He must have had a really good serving practice day yesterday. Overall he really outplayed me.
“[Last year] I lost in an epic five-set match that we went toe-to-toe. This year it was nothing like that. It was all about him. He was the dominant force on the court and deserved to win. From the very beginning, you could see he was at least half a step better than I am in every way.”
Despite the defeat and the manner of it, Djokovic – who made a remarkable recovery from knee surgery to even take part in Wimbledon this year – said he will be back to compete in the championships again.
“As far as coming back here, I would love to,” he said. “I don’t have anything else in my thoughts right now that this is my last Wimbledon. I really want to play.
“I don’t have any limitations in my mind. I still want to keep going and play as long as I feel like I can play on this high level.”
Of the epic opening game to the final which lasted 14 minutes, 20 points and eventually saw Alcaraz seal an opening break, Djokovic said: “The first game was incredible. One of the longest first games I’ve ever played.
“That set the tone. I think he was coming out from the blocks ready to battle and ready to play his best level right away, which wasn’t the case last year where I started better, had a comfortable first-set win.
“Today, from the first point, he was there, he was ready. That’s all I can say in terms of that.”
Djokovic now sets his sights on the Olympics – an event he has never won before in four previous attempts – and he knows the quality of Alcaraz and 22-year-old Italian Jannik Sinner will make it tough to take home a gold medal.
“The Olympic Games and US Open are the two big goals for the rest of the year for me, really. I’m hoping I can be at my best on those two tournaments,” he said.
“Being able to reach the final of Wimbledon, of course, it’s a great confidence boost. But I also feel like in a match-up today against the best player right now in the world for sure, other than Jannik [Sinner] – both of them are the best this year by far – I feel like I’m not at that level.
“In order to really have a chance to beat these guys in a Grand Slam latter stages or Olympics, I’m going to have to play much better than I did today and feel much better than I did today.
“I’m going to work on it. It’s not something I haven’t experienced before ever in my life. I’ve had so many different experiences throughout my career. In the face of adversity, normally I rise and I learn and get stronger. That’s what I’m going to do.”
Carlos Alcaraz speaking to media…
“Obviously I’ve seen and heard all the stats that I am the youngest to win at Roland Garros and Wimbledon the same year. I honestly try not to think about it too much.
“Obviously it’s a really great start of my career, but I have to keep going. I have to keep building my path.
“At the end of my career, I want to sit at the same table as the big guys. That’s my main goal. That’s my dream right now. It doesn’t matter if I’ve already won four Grand Slams at the age of 21 if I don’t keep going in all these tournaments.
“I really want to keep going. I will try to keep winning and end my career with a lot of them.
“I’m really happy with the work that I’m doing with my team. I’m really proud of myself, all the things that I’m doing great.
“Everything we have done already has been unbelievable, an amazing journey so far. As I said, I really want to keep going, to keep improving, to keep growing up, try to keep winning. That’s all that matters for me right now.
“I don’t know what is my limit. I don’t want to think about it. I just want to keep enjoying my moment, just to keep dreaming. So let’s see if at the end of my career it’s going to be 25, 30, 15, four [Grand Slam titles]. I don’t know.
“All I want to say is I want to keep enjoying, and let’s see what the future brings.”
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