Carlos Alcaraz completed an inspired comeback to beat Novak Djokovic and win the 2023 Riyadh Season Tennis Cup.
After we were treated to four matches between these two players in 2023, many tennis fans thought that the next match between Djokovic and Alcaraz would happen in 2024, but that wasn't true, as the two agreed to play in a lucrative and prestigious exhibition match.
The 2023 Riyadh Season Tennis Cup season is an exciting event during the off-season, and the women's match was won by Aryna Sabalenka, who bested Ons Jabeur in three sets.
One day after that, two highest-ranked players on the ATP Tour met on the same court, and once again, fans were treated to a spectacular match and a little peak into what we should expect in 2024.
In the first set of the match, Alcaraz started with an early break, but the 24-time Grand Slam champion then won 14 of the following 15 rallies, to recover the break and lead 3-2 and 30-0.
After that, both players enjoyed one more similar streak. First, the Spaniard won seven points in a row, before Djokovic won eight of the last nine rallies of the set to secure another break and win the opening set 6-4.
But the two-time Grand Slam champion wanted to entertain the fans in Riyadh and treat them to at least one more set, and he managed to do that. Once again, the 2023 Wimbledon winner started the set with a break, but this time, he wasn't broken.
On top of that, Alcaraz didn't even face a single break point, and he comfortably won the second set 6-4, with both players delivering some magic throughout the second part of the match.
The third set was very similar to the first one. Initially, Alcaraz started with a break, and Djokovic broke back after that.
However, this time, the 20-year-old didn't allow to be broken again. On the contrary, he was the one who added another break to win the match 4-6, 6-4, 6-4 and win the 2023 Riyadh Season Tennis Cup.