Carlos Alcaraz has said that he just tries to be himself after Novak Djokovic called him a mix of the Big Three, as the two men prepare for their clash in the final of the Cincinnati Open.
World No. 1 Alcaraz has succeeded in having a deep run at the Western & Southern Open in Cincinnati this week. He defeated fourteenth seed Tommy Paul, who knocked the Spaniard out of the Canadian Open last week, and won against Hubert Hurkacz 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 to reach the final of the ATP Masters 1000 event.
Meanwhile, 23-time Grand Slam champion Djokovic has emerged victorious against Gael Monfils, ninth seed Taylor Fritz and sixteenth seed Alexander Zverev without dropping a set on his way to another clash with Alcaraz. This final will be a re-match of their meeting at the Wimbledon final last month, where the 20-year-old defeated seven-time SW19 champion Djokovic in a five-set thriller.
Speaking after his defeat at the All England Club, the 36-year-old praised Alcaraz, calling him the best mix of tennis' legendary Big Three including Djokovic himself, Roger Federer, and Rafael Nadal.
"I didn't expect him to play so well this year on grass, but he's proven that he's the best player in the world, no doubt," Djokovic said of Alcaraz.
"He's playing some fantastic tennis on different surfaces and he deserves to be where he is.
"I think people have been talking in the past 12 months or so about his game consisting of certain elements from Roger, Rafa, and myself. I would agree with that. I think he's got basically the best of all three worlds," he added.
Speaking ahead of their clash at the Cincinnati Open, Alcaraz said that he was flattered by Djokovic's praise of him.
"It’s great someone like Novak [Djokovic] says these things about you. Someone who played against the best Nadal, against the best Federer, & says I have some things about them. It’s great for me," he said.
However, the two-time Grand Slam champion added that he doesn't fully agree with the Serb, as he likes to see himself as simply being like himself.
"But I don’t totally agree because I always say I'm full Carlos Alcaraz. I didn't put styles like Rafa, like Roger, like Novak. I just try to follow my own path, try to create Carlos Alcaraz. I always say that. I'm believing that I'm not the characteristics of anyone but Carlos Alcaraz," he continued.
Carlos Alcaraz says he doesn’t fully agree with Djokovic’s statement that he is a mix of The Big 3: “It’s great someone like Novak says these things about you. Someone who played against the best Nadal, against the best Federer, & says I have some things about them. It’s great…
