Spanish Carlos Alcaraz, second place in the world rankings, returns to Australian Open after being dropped in 2023 with a view to lifting his third Grand Slam crown, while the Serbian Novak Djokovic the first in the world, he will try to expand his legend and achieve his twenty-fifth major crown and his tenth conquest at Melbourne Park.
Alcaraz will have the opportunity to regain the first position in the ATP list if both tennis players reach the semi-finals and the Murcian achieves a better result than the Balkan.
He could also reign supreme in the world rankings if he reaches at least the quarter-finals, Djokovic drops to the round of 16 and Russian Daniil Medvedev, who could also become number one after the tournament, fails to win the title.
The Spanish tennis player commented on his debut at the 2024 tournament.
I’m very motivated, I hope everything will be as good as in 2023. I prepared very well for this tournament. I have improved the areas that I fell short of last year. This year, I think everything will be fine. On and off the track, everyone can improve something. I’m not perfect.
Alcaraz and his team, as he himself explained at a press conference, decided not to play in any of the tournaments until the first Grand Slam of the season, also held in the oceanic country, in order to rest “both physically and mentally.” “
The 20-year-old, coached by Samuel Lopez due to the loss of Juan Carlos Ferrero, lost to the local team. Alex De Minaur (10) this Wednesday, in the super tie-break of the third set, she confidently beat the Norwegian (6-4 and 6-2) Casper Ruud (11) at two charity shows organized by the Australian Helmet Organization.
Alcaraz ended the season exhausted by the demands of the schedule, heavy defeats against direct opponents such as Djokovic in the semi-finals of the ATP Finals or Italian Jannik Sinner (4) in the semi-finals of Beijing.
However, the Murcian was able to raise his figure to the highest level and turn out to be the most successful tennis player of all time. Djokovicwho is capable of beating him on the big stage after winning an epic five-set fight in the 2023 Wimbledon final.
The Balkan is the heavy favorite for the tournament due to his undoubted love for the Rod Laver Arena, a venue on which he has been crowned up to ten times, as well as his superb 2023 season in which he won three of the four Grands. Grand Slam tournaments, as well as the ATP Finals, take place in Turin.
This will be the first time the Serbian will not have to deal with the presence of his two historical rivals, Spain’s Rafael Nadal and Switzerland’s Roger Federer, in the draw, after the Balearic player withdrew from the competition due to a microtear muscle he suffered during defeat to local Jordan Thompson at a recent tournament in Brisbane.
Alcaraz, who makes his debut on Tuesday against Frenchman Richard Gasquet, will have a more demanding draw than his main rival, at least in the early rounds, in which he could face Italian Lorenzo Sonego, Italian Daniel Evans, Kazakh Alexander. Bublik (31 years old), American Tommy Paul (14 years old) and German Alexander Zverev.
The only advantage the Spaniard has over the Serbian is that he is on the same side of the draw as the Italian. Jannik Sinner (4), whom they could face in a hypothetical semi-final.
Alcaraz would also have no available competitor, given that it would cross paths with the Russian Daniil Medvedev (3) in the semi-finals, but the Italian poses a big threat today after finishing last season in the best possible way, with great victories over Djokovic and De Minaur and winning the Davis Cup in Spain.
The world’s first qualifier will open his way against previously qualified Croatian Dino Prizmic and could face the winner of the Australian bout between guest Mark Polmans and Alexei Popyrin in the second round.
The Serb will face American Ben Shelton (16) in a hypothetical 1/8 final, Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (7) in the quarterfinals and Sinner (4) in the semifinals.
The other two big favorites for this title are Sinner and Medvedev.
Daniil Medvedev.
(according to information from EFE)
Source: Aristegui Noticias
I’m George Gonzalez, a professional journalist and author at The Nation View. With more than 5 years of experience in the field, I specialize in covering sports news for various print media outlets. My passion for writing has enabled me to craft stories that capture the attention of readers all over the world.
