Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz make people laugh after the crazy final

After losing the final at Wimbledon, Novak Djokovic returned to Carlos Alcaraz. The Serb won the Cincinnati final in 3 hours 49 minutes 5: 7, 7: 6 (9: 7), 7: 6 (7: 4).

Djokovic, who has not competed in a tournament since Wimbledon a month ago, showed an impressive comeback in the final of the Cincinnati ATP 1000 heat. In the second set, he first made up for a break deficit and held off a match point in a tiebreaker to reach the deciding set. There he maintained the best finish for himself in one of the three longest matches in tour history: he used his fifth match point.

After the marathon match, the two opponents were full of praise for each other and made the audience laugh several times. “It’s great to play against you and to learn from a champion like yourself so closely,” Alcaraz said when handing over the trophy. Djokovic immediately returned the compliment: “You are an amazing person and a champion. What you have already achieved in your career so far is unbelievable.”

One of the main reasons for Alcaraz’s success is that he never gives up. “I like it with you,” Djokovic said, “but sometimes I wish you’d play a few points a little more relaxed.” The 20-year-old Alcaraz replied that the Spaniards would never die, at which point Djokovic said, pointing to Rafael Nadal: “I’ve seen that many times.”

“The bottom line is that it was one of the toughest and most exciting matches of all time,” said Djokovic, who tore his shirt after the win. It felt like a Grand Slam final. With each match between the two getting closer, the world number two wishes the two also meet in the final of the US Open, which starts next Monday. “That would be great,” said the three-time New York tournament winner, adding, “For the crowd, maybe less for me.”

With his 95th tournament win on the ATP Tour, Djokovic has overtaken Ivan Lendl and is third in the rankings – behind Jimmy Connors (109) and Roger Federer (103). (nih/sda)

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