Novak Djokovic came within two sets of winning a 25th Grand Slam title on Sunday.
The Serbian superstar led Carlos Alcaraz by one set to love in the Australian Open final. However, he was unable to close out the contest, eventually losing 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 on Rod Laver Arena.
By defeating Djokovic in Melbourne, Alcaraz has become the youngest man in history to complete the Career Grand Slam in Men’s Singles while also equalling a record held by Bjorn Borg.
For Djokovic, the loss represented a missed opportunity in his hunt for a 25th major title. Djokovic is currently tied with Margaret Court for the most Grand Slam singles titles in tennis history.
After losing Sunday’s contest, Djokovic revealed his struggles with one particular shot during the match.
Can Carlos Alcaraz win MORE Grand Slams than Novak Djokovic? 🤔
Novak Djokovic says his forehand ‘broke down in important moments’ against Carlos Alcaraz
Djokovic was honest in his assessment of the match during his post-match press conference, highlighting his forehand as a particular problem area against the Spaniard.
“Game-wise, you saw it. I mean, for the first set was one of the best sets I’ve played the last couple years,” Djokovic said of his fast start to the match.
“Then, you know, I kind of regained my energy back and momentum in mid-fourth. Asked the crowd to get involved. They did.
“Yeah, just a bad miss at 4-All and break point, and that forehand, I had a good look at that forehand. Yeah, my forehand broke down in important moments. Yeah, that’s what happens.
“I mean, one or two shots can change the momentum of the match and switch things around, which happened. Yeah, I’m just very disappointed I wasn’t able to maintain that kind of feeling that I had in the first set.
“You know, a lot of what-if scenarios in my head, and yeah, I guess it is what it is. You have to just accept it as it is.”
After winning the first set against Alcaraz, Djokovic seemed destined to win his 11th title in Melbourne. However, it was not to be for the Serbian superstar, who will next have the opportunity to win a 25th Slam at the French Open in June.
Djokovic says if he thought he was going to win the Australian Open after winning the first set against Carlos Alcaraz
Later on in the press conference, Djokovic admitted that he believed he ‘might’ be able to win the title after claiming the first set against Alcaraz.
He said: “Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I knew he’s [Alcaraz] a very smart, all-around player that obviously changes tactics and adjusts his game depending on how he feels the opponent is playing, so I knew that he’s going to switch things around and he’s going to raise his level.
Should Djokovic retire whatever happens in the Australian Open final and go out in a blaze of glory?
“So I didn’t — you know, I knew what I needed to do, but just some things happened, and my energy, my level went completely down from north to south in two games.
“Yeah, that’s when I managed to recuperate and kind of feel re-energized, as I said, mid-fourth. I was close. I was close, but wasn’t meant to be.”
Djokovic will return to world number three after his final run in Australia. The 38-year-old has overtaken Alexander Zverev, who lost to Alcaraz in the semi-finals.
