Novak Djokovic believes the old guard is "running out" and that Carlos Alcaraz has emerged as a worthy successor before their exhibition clash in Saudi Arabia.
Djokovic has trumped so many records on the men's tour that many now proclaim him the greatest tennis player in history. He matched the all-time Grand Slam record of 24 titles and became the first man to win 40 Masters 1000 titles last season.
In his generation, he battled against the likes of Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal - two icons in tennis that have always been held in higher estimation than the Serb. But Djokovic has eclipsed both of his longtime rivals in almost every metric, including the Slams.
With Federer now retired and Nadal being out of the picture for nearly the whole of last season, the defining rivalry that emerged was that of Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz. The pair pushed each other to the very limit, but the experienced head of the 36-year-old World No. 1 won the day.
Djokovic and Alcaraz met five times on the ATP Tour, and each one of those clashes has been either a semifinal or a final of a big tournament. The Serbian star leads the head-to-head 3-2, winning their most recent meeting at the ATP Finals in Turin.
Speaking to Eurosport ahead of their last showdown of 2023, which will take place in Saudi Arabia's capital, Riyadh, Djokovic has seen enough to assert that Alcaraz will become a future great in the sport. In fact, he tipped him to be "one of the great leaders" for the next decade and more.
"He will be one of the great leaders of this sport for the next 10-15 years and, definitely, we will continue to see many things from him (Alcaraz) in the biggest tournaments. Nadal didn't play in 2023, Federer retired. Our generation is running out, but what emerges in Alcaraz is great."
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