"Carlos Alcaraz is the best player in the world this year" admits Novak Djokovic

| by Zachary Wimer

While Rafael Nadal was troubled by an injury and Novak Djokovic was getting back in shape after missing the majority of the 2022 season, young star Carlos Alcaraz used his opportunity and stunned the world of tennis.

The young Spaniard triumphed at the 2022 Barcelona Open and 2022 Madrid Open and is currently undefeated in 10 matches in a row. He became the first player to ever defeat Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal back-to-back on a clay-court and rose to the sixth place of the ATP Rankings. After coming to Rome for the 2022 Italian Open, the current world number 1 praised Carlos Alcaraz once more, when he said:

"He definitely is special. Already he's breaking a lot of records as a teenager, winning two Masters events this year, a couple of 500s. So far he's the best player in the world, no question, this year with the results that he's been doing."

WATCH: Alcaraz makes history by defeating Djokovic in Madrid
WATCH: Alcaraz makes history by defeating Djokovic in Madrid

"The way he was dealing with the pressure... In our match few days ago, how calm he was all the way till the [end] was impressive. He deserved to win the trophy. Everything about his game is really impressive. He's a really complete player, can play equally well offensively and defensively. He's the talk of the sport."

Novak Djokovic will kick-off his 2022 Italian Open campaign already on Tuesday against Aslan Karatsev who defeated Lloyd Harris in the first round. In the potential third-round clash, the Serbian would meet Stan Wawrinka or Laslo Djere who he defeated in Belgrade a couple of weeks ago.

Novak Djokovic's path to the trophy at the 2022 Italian Open
Novak Djokovic's path to the trophy at the 2022 Italian Open

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