Novak Djokovic spent the weekend embroiled in a row with Channel 9, but it is Carlos Alcaraz who will play the part of his adversary after an apology from the broadcaster appeared to smooth things over for Tony Jones’s ill-advised attempt at humour.
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Read More“It’s definitely a very exciting match. Probably two of the most exciting players on tour playing each other,” said Holger Rune, beaten in the fourth round on Monday, one of many players who will be fitting watching the match into their schedule.
“So it’s going to be a big battle. I don’t know if I’ll be on the plane or whatever. If I can, I’ll try to watch.”
At the Olympic Games, their last meeting where Djokovic edged ahead 4-3 in the head-to-head, he made Alcaraz run early, going down the line at every opportunity, moving the Spaniard around. When they played at the same venue – Roland Garros – 15 months earlier, Alcaraz had been beset by huge cramps in his arms and legs, a combination of anxiety and fatigue, and perhaps Djokovic wanted to find out if it might happen again.
Getting Alcaraz to move into the forehand, rather than him hitting it while set, also negates his ability to hit the drop shot, the weapon of which he is arguably the tour’s leading exponent.
The Djokovic serve
“All right, [John] Isner,” was how Frances Tiafoe described his thoughts when facing Djokovic here for the first time, referring to the towering American with an all-time serve. Tiafoe also pointed out that Djokvoic’s ball toss is virtually the same for each serve.
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Read MoreAlcaraz has won a greater percentage of return games than almost any other player in the tournament at 44 per cent: only fellow quarter-finalist Tommy Paul (48) of the United States has a better mark.
Djokovic was struggling in the Ohio summer heat, and serve-and-volleyed six times behind second serve, winning the point every time. This late-night clash – due on around 8.30pm local time – is unlikely to produce similar conditions, but it is still expected Djokovic, who has not been physically 100 per cent in Melbourne this year, will still be aggressive against Alcaraz, especially given the Spaniard’s baseline winning percentage in this tournament is 58 per cent, the best in the draw.
The physical battle
Alcaraz, meanwhile, has been lightly raced at the Australian Open and appears to have a significant advantage in terms of energy expended. He has spent just seven hours and 45 minutes on court in his four matches, helped by Jack Draper’s fourth-round retirement, while Djokovic has needed exactly 11 hours to reach the same stage.
Temperatures should have dipped well below 30°C by the time the match starts, but if it remains humid, those extra hours and minutes could prove crucial.
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