"I saw Novak Djokovic in Carlos Alcaraz for the first time & it made me scared for the others" - Andrea Petkovic on Spaniard's form at Wimbledon 2024

Andrea Petkovic recently commented on Carlos Alcaraz's performance at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships. She felt she saw shades of Novak Djokovic's game in the Spaniard.

Alcaraz was seeded second at the grasscourt tournament and kicked off his campaign by defeating qualifier Mark Lajal and Aleksandar Vukic in the first and second rounds, respectively. He then triumphed over 29th seed Frances Tiafoe in the third round and 16th seed Ugo Humbert in the fourth. The World No. 3 then overcame 12th seed Tommy Paul in the quarterfinals and fifth seed Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals to secure his spot in the final.

In the summit clash, Carlos Alcaraz outplayed the seven-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic 6-2, 6-2, 7-6(4) to clinch the 2024 Wimbledon Championships title. This was his second grasscourt Major title, his second Grand Slam of the season following his win at the 2024 French Open, where he defeated Alexander Zverev in the final, and his fourth Grand Slam title overall.

Andrea Petkovic recently talked about the final match between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic and stated that it wasn't as much that the Serb had an off-day on the court, it was more of Alcaraz playing exceptionally well to take home the trophy.

The German also stated that she saw the Spaniard displaying glimpses of Djokovic's playing style in his game, which made her scared for his future opponents.

"It wasn’t a full off-day for Novak but he did have a very slow start. Paired with the best match Carlos played all fortnight it ended up looking like Novak was being overpowered and outplayed. The moment he found his footing in the third set, things got more interesting but it was too late facing a ravishing Carlos Alcaraz. Interestingly, I saw Novak Djokovic in Carlos Alcaraz for the first time and it made me scared for the others," Andrea Petkovic wrote on Substack.

Andrea Petkovic also praised Alcaraz for finding his rhythm and delivering his best performance in the final against Novak Djokovic.

"Carlos found his game. He upped his level, found the depth, the power, the variety and everyone else instantly became fodder. He played his best match against Novak Djokovic in the final," she added.

Carlos Alcaraz on Novak Djokovic losing Wimbledon 2024 final: "After this defeat he's going to train even harder"

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic

Following his win over Novak Djokovic in the final of the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Carlos Alcaraz spoke with Spanish outlet Marca about the Serb. He revealed that when he first saw Djokovic on the training grounds at SW19 this year following his knee surgery, he was left in awe and called him a "superhuman" and a "titan."

Alcaraz stated that Djokovic's playing capabilities and ambitious nature would lead him to make a strong comeback and put him back on the winning track in no time.

"When I saw him this year at Wimbledon for the first time, and he was dealing with his knee, we joked and I told him he was a superhuman, a titan. We all know what a good player and how ambitious Djokovic is. I'm sure that after this defeat he's going to train even harder and become a better player," Alcaraz said (translated from Spanish).

The World No. 3 recalled how Novak Djokovic had bounced back from losing the Wimbledon final in 2023 to win the Cincinnati Masters and the US Open. He also stated that he doesn't see a "changing of the guard" anytime soon due to Djokovic's dominance.

"We already saw it last year when after losing here he won Cincinnati and the US Open. We all know what Novak is capable of and now the Olympic Games are coming and we'll see. What we can say is that we're going to train hard so that this type of situation doesn't happen again and that Djokovic doesn't beat us again. Honestly, I don't see a changing of the guard," he added.

With his victory at the 2024 Wimbledon Championships, Carlos Alcaraz improved his head-to-head record against Novak Djokovic on the ATP Tour to three wins and three losses, and two wins and one loss at the Grand Slam stage.