London, July 13
Ahead of his Wimbledon final clash against Novak Djokovic, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz said that he feels ready to etch history by joining the list of legends to have won the French Open and Wimbledon titles in the same calendar year.
In a rematch of 2023 Wimbledon final, the young Spanish sensation Alcaraz and Djokovic will lock horns, with the former aiming to join Rod Lever, Bjorn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Djokovic as winners of the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year and the latter aiming to equal Federer's record of eight Wimbledon singles titles.
Alcaraz has become just the fourth player in the Open Era to achieve multiple Wimbledon final qualifications at the age of 21 or less. The 21-year-old, just last month at Roland Garros, became the youngest player of the Open Era to secure a major title on all three surfaces, the grass, clay, and hard courts.
Speaking ahead of the final, Alcaraz said, "Winning Grand Slams is difficult. Obviously, changing from clay to a grass court, totally different surfaces, totally different game of play. Let us say I am going to try. Obviously, I want to put my name on that short list to win Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year. I know that is going to be a really difficult and big challenge for me, but I think I am ready to do it."
After winning the Wimbledon title by beating Djokovic, the young Spainard lost to him in the Cincinnati and ATP Finals. The interesting question is if Alcaraz will bounce back and prove that his win over the legendary Serbian in London last year was not a fluke.
Alcaraz said that the match with Djokovic during the last Wimbledon put him in a "great trouble" and was "difficult".
"I know how it is going to feel playing against Djokovic. I have played him a few times in Grand Slams, finals of the Masters 1000 multiple times against him. I know what I have to do. I am sure he knows what he has to do to beat me. It is going to be a really interesting one," he added.