Pam Shriver has said that she loves the fact that Carlos Alcaraz thinks about Novak Djokovic every day as she praises their "special" rivalry.

Two-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz recently admitted that World No.1 Djokovic was on his mind all the time while practicing. This came after the Serbian player usurped Alcaraz at the top of the ATP Ranking following the US Open, where Djokovic won his record 24th major while the Spaniard failed to defend his title from last year.

Ahead of the Asian Swing, Alcaraz was asked in an interview with Tennis TV how often he thought about his rivalry with Djokovic. The 20-year-old replied that he thought about it in almost every practice session because his goal was to usurp the 36-year-old in the rankings in time to be the year-end No. 1.

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"Almost in every practice [laughing] I'm not going to lie.

"I practice with a goal, I go to the tournaments with a goal, it's trying to end the year as World number 1. So, Novak Djokovic is around my mind almost in every practice," he said.

Shriver praises rivalry between top two players

Although this aim is now impossible after Alcaraz crashed out of the ATP 1000 Shanghai Masters in the Round of 16, former World No. 3 Shriver has praised the great rivalry between the current top two players in the sport.

"Well, I think that's part of building a rivalry, right? I mean it's really been special what has happened since Roland Garros because that was the semifinal that everybody wanted," the 61-year-old said on a recent episode of the Inside-In podcast.

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"I guess they played in Madrid the year before, but they hadn't played in a Major. And then even though it did not end up great because of the loss of condition by Alcaraz, the first two sets were just mind-blowingly great. And then in the Wimbledon final, the same.

"So whenever you can get two great matchups late in a Major that are that memorable, a rivalry is born. And I love the fact that Alcaraz just says out front, 'I think about him [Novak Djokovic] every day. I don't know if he thinks of the number 23, because that would be a little intimidating," she continued.

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20-year-old Carlos Alcaraz. 36-year-old Novak Djokovic. Tennis is blessed with an epic, intergenerational rivalry 🫶

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