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Novak Djokovic is now making history of his own.
After making Rafael Nadal’s domain his own by sailing to a third French Open title and record-breaking 23rd singles Grand Slam championship this month, he now has Roger Federer’s house, the grass courts at Wimbledon, in his sights. Victory in London would extend the gap between him and his rivals and put him well on course for an in-year Grand Slam.
Djokovic is perhaps as nailed-on a favourite at Wimbledon this year, which commences on Monday, as any player has been over the last decade. He is the four-time defending champion, and unbeaten in a completed match there since 2016. He has won 86 main draw singles matches at SW19, the rest of the world’s top 20 players, combined, have won only 85.
While the chasing pack scampers to get used to the quick transition from clay to grass, Djokovic’s preparations have only included a few exhibition games. He is one of only two fit top 20 players to not play a grass tune-up, while nine of the world’s top 10 women’s players are playing in the week before Wimbledon, a rarity before any other Major.
New level unlocked 🔓@DjokerNole is back on top of the men’s leaderboard.#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/83t4CXrw75
— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 11, 2023
Outside favourites aside, like in Paris, the set of serious contenders is a one-man shortlist of Carlos Alcaraz, the 20-year-old World No. 1 from Spain going through a 12-month-long burst of mega form. The duo did battle at Roland Garros in a semifinal that was billed to be the tennis event of the year but trudged to an anti-climactic finish when after two hard-fought sets, at honours even, Alcaraz succumbed to cramp and lost the match comprehensively.
Alcaraz reset immediately, deciding to play a tune-up event on grass at Queens where he won his first title on the surface, played himself into form, and took the No.1 ranking again to be the top seed at Wimbledon. Despite his inexperience, with a dynamic, attack-first playing style and comfort on the big stage, he remains, at the pre-tournament stage at least, Djokovic’s greatest threat.
Novak Djokovic had to give props to Carlos Alcaraz after an UNREAL shot 😮
(via @rolandgarros)pic.twitter.com/UZ29frvPKd
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 9, 2023
All-court attack
One of the longest-standing tenets of tennis is the fact that if patient, dogged, defensive tennis is the key to succeed on clay; risky, fast, attacking tennis excels on grass. While still holding true to an extent, that notion has gone through an evolution over the years.
The neatly-trimmed grass made for difficult side-to-side movement, erratic and low bounces, and did not break momentum of massive serves. That is why, for years, serve-and-volley experts reigned supreme at SW19 before the surface went through a change.
In 2002, organisers switched from a mix of ryegrass and creeping red fescue to pure ryegrass in order to numb the effectiveness of big serves. The courts began to play slower, the bounces became more regular, and running became less slippery. Not to say that serves and net game became redundant, but it aided a more all-court attacking style, the kind that was eventually mastered by Federer – whose all-time record of 8 singles title at SW19 can be equalled by Djokovic this year.
As players’ conditioning improved, and the surface and equipment changed, baseline play became central to playing on grass (the surface around the Center Court baseline at the end of Wimbledon resembles a barren yard, while the surface at the net remains serene). But despite defenders seeing greater success, the basic attacking aspects of grass court play continued to be rewarded.
A testament to Djokovic’s own longevity on grass has been the evolution of his well-formed game. Since his first title win at Wimbledon in 2011, he has added power and consistency to his first serve, is keener to come to the net and even serve and volley, uses more variety from the baseline, and has developed an expertly-weighted backhand slice. Each of his opponents in the last four finals – Nick Kyrgios, Matteo Berrettini, Federer, and Kevin Anderson – have been big-serving, attack-first players.
And Alcaraz is more of that mould. Unlike players of the generation above him, he prefers to shorten rallies instead of engaging in baseline marathons, is comfortable with serve and volley, and at the net in general, likes to stay tight to, or inside, the baseline, and despite having a devastating forehand, his signature is a well-disguised drop shot.
“I’ve been around a long time and Alcaraz is the best player I have ever seen at his age, he’s got all the tools for grass,” Allen Fox, a former Wimbledon singles quarterfinalist who is now one of the game’s leading psychologists, told The Indian Express. “He can do everything, and do it well. The only area in which he is not better than the rest is his serve, and that’s pretty good too.”
“Novak is coming to Wimbledon so…” 🤝@carlosalcaraz on being the number 1 seed at Wimbledon. pic.twitter.com/IlqYdQOBu8
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) June 25, 2023
Fox is confident Alcaraz will succeed at Wimbledon one day, if not this year itself. He does not believe the cramping Alcaraz faced during the French Open semifinal will prove to be a mental hurdle.
“Confidence is everything on grass. The pressure is higher on important points because opportunities to break serve are fewer, and sets can be tight, go to tiebreakers,” Fox said. “You can see it in his shot selection, and in the way he handles himself under pressure, he is very confident. He handles his nerves exceptionally.”
As the top two seeds in London, Alcaraz and Djokovic can only set up a meeting in the final, which would, by some considerable distance, be one of the biggest tennis events of the past few years. His victory won’t just signal a changing of the guard, but in the year of Federer’s retirement, it will also bring back daring, attacking tennis to the forefront at Wimbledon.
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