By Richard Pagliaro | @TennisNow | Tuesday, January 21, 2025
Photo: ROLEX
The Rod Laver Arena court was a historic crossroads.
A mess Novak Djokovic seemed to be nearing the end of the road when he gave an extraordinary rally to be destroyed Carlos Alcaraz the big dream and continue his.
More: Sinner and Cahill will part ways after 2025
The 37-year-old Serbian superstar overcame an apparent hamstring or groin injury to beat Alcaraz 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4 in a wild marathon match to reach his 12th semi-final of the Australian Open.
This is the 50th major semifinal for Djokovic, who is playing for his 100th career title, including a record 25th Grand Slam championship.
Alcaraz told Tennis Now last month his main goal for 2025 was to win the AO and complete his career Grand Slam.
Djokovic denied that dream, for now, but gave the 21-year-old Spaniard a lesson in tennis persistence.
Alcaraz, who carried a 55-1 record when winning the first set of a major match in this Olympic final rematch, said afterward the loss is a lesson in the importance of maintaining intensity against a seemingly damaged opponent.
“Honestly, I felt like I was controlling the game and I let him get back into the game,” Alcaraz said. “I will say that this is the biggest mistake I made today.
“In the second set I had to play a little bit better just to push him to the limit even more. Yeah, he saw that he was having trouble just moving a little bit in the second set. I had to push him a little bit more. Just in limit, and I didn’t do it, I think he started to feel better and that was my biggest mistake.
“But obviously when Novak is at this level, it’s really difficult. I think I had my chances. It was a very close match. I think most of the deciding points went to him.”
The reigning Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion showed his frustration at one point by looking at coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and stomping on his leg as if wondering how badly his opponent was injured.
In his post-match presser, Alcaraz said he’s not accusing Djokovic of gamesmanship, but noted a dramatic transformation in the 10-time AO champion’s swing.
“I think everybody saw in the second set that he’s struggling a little bit to move,” Alcaraz told the media in Melbourne. “I don’t know if it was more running towards the wing or behind, but he was definitely fighting. Then the third and fourth set, I didn’t see anything bad from him.
“So I’m not saying he put on a show. I’m just saying, I don’t know. It’s obvious and everybody saw that he was struggling in the second set. Then in the third and fourth set he showed that it was really good.”
In a touching scene 15 minutes into the match, former world no Andy MurrayDjokovic’s new coach tracked down Alcaraz in the gym and paid respects to the Spaniard as he pedaled an exercise bike to cool down from a 3-hour, 37-minute battle.
The four-time Grand Slam champion said he sees this loss as a learning experience and is grateful to grow from it.
“I’m playing great, great matches,” Alcaraz said. “I mean, we push us to the limit, each other. I think we played great points, great rallies. It was really tough the third set, the fourth set. I think, the whole match, I think.
“I am lucky to live this experience. I am 21 years old. From these matches I am getting so much experience on how to face everything.
“I won’t hide. I’ve done great things in tennis already, but playing against one of the best in the history of our sport, these kinds of matches help me a lot in the future to be better.”
