Novak Djokovic reflects on the ‘biggest challenge’ of playing Carlos Alcaraz for the Men’s Singles Gold Medal at the Paris Olympics

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz played in the Wimbledon final only three weeks ago.

Novak Djokovic reflects on the ‘biggest challenge’ of playing Carlos Alcaraz for the Men’s Singles Gold Medal at the Paris Olympics

Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz (Via Imago)

Novak Djokovic reached the Olympic gold medal match for the first time in his career after beating Lorenzo Musetti 6-4, 6-2 on Friday, August 2. It was a rematch of their five-set encounter earlier this year at Roland Garros, which the Serb also won.

Djokovic will play Carlos Alcaraz for the ultimate prize at the Olympics. This will be a rematch of their Wimbledon final three weeks ago, which the Spaniard won in straight sets 6-2, 6-2, 7-6.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t-wWHQ55IUI&pp=ygUObm92YWsgZGpva292aWM%3D 
Playing Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday in the final is the biggest challenge I can have right now. I feel better than I did at Wimbledon and am moving better.
Novak Djokovic said in his post-match interview

The Olympic gold medal match, unlike the rest of the tournament, will be a best-of-five set match. Hence, it will be interesting to see the condition of both players going into this match. Djokovic is still recovering from the meniscus tear he sustained at Roland Garros two months ago. On the other hand, Alcaraz has played the most matches since the start of the French Open. Moreover, the Spaniard has played eight matches in seven days across men’s singles and men’s doubles at the Paris Olympics.

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Novak Djokovic flies past Lorenzo Musetti to reach the Olympic Gold Medal match

Serbian star Novak Djokovic became the oldest man to contest the men’s singles Olympic Gold medal match with a straight-set win over Lorenzo Musetti. In the rematch of their Wimbledon semifinals, the Serb showed calmness and composure, winning the last five games to secure the victory.

Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti
Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti (Via Imago)

The win on Friday means that Djokovic now has his best result at the Olympic singles. Previously, the Serbian’s best achievement was a men’s singles bronze medal for Serbia in the 2008 Beijing Games. Now, at least a silver medal is guaranteed for the former World No. 1.

Djokovic will now meet Carlos Alcaraz in the Olympic Gold medal match. Alcaraz thrashed Felix Auger-Aliassime earlier in the day 6-1, 6-1. The Spaniard has lost only one match in almost two months, securing Grand Slam titles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon.

Djokovic has now secured a second successive final match in 2024 after not playing in any finals for the first six months. His first final came at Wimbledon, where he lost to Alcaraz.

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