Novak Djokovic won his 6th ATP Finals, reinforcing the sentiment, especially among his fans, that he is the best tennis player in the world. The Serbian ace finishes the current season ranked number 5. However, since he refused to be vaccinated for the coronavirus, he could not compete in many top tournaments, such as 4 ATP1000 events in North America and 2 slams (in Australia and the US). Furthermore, he didn’t have 2,000 points awarded after he won Wimbledon following the quarrel between the ATP and The Championships for not allowing players from Russia and Belarus to compete in the UK.
‘I am not the best’
Once again, Novak Djokovic was extremely gracious when asked if he felt he was the best tennis player in the world. Novak said he is still ranked only number 5, and Carlos Alcaraz is the leader of the rankings.
“In my mind I always see myself as the best player in the world, of course,” he said. “I’m not. I’m fifth. This week I probably am. Overall the rankings are showing who had the best year, and Alcaraz is the No. 1 in the world.”
Novak Djokovic in 2022
Ranked no.5, Novak played his last match on the 20th of November when he beat world no.3 Casper Ruud 7-5 6-3 in the final in the Nitto ATP Finals to win his 91st
career title.At the moment, during this season the Serbian has managed to achieve an overall 42-7 match record. Djokovic has won 5 titles in 2022 in Rome, Wimbledon, Tel Aviv, Astana and Turin. Novak got to the final in Belgrade and Paris.
Carlos Alcaraz in 2022
Now the world no.1, Alcaraz played his last match on the 4th of November when he had to retire when playing against world no.11 Holger Rune in the quarter and the scoreline was 6-3 6-6 .
This year the Spaniard has managed to achieve a 57-13 record. Carlos clinched 5 titles in 2022 in Rio de Janeiro, Miami, Barcelona, Madrid and U.S. Open. The Spaniard was the runner-up in Hamburg and Umag.
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz played each other just 1 time. Their current record is 1-0 for Alcaraz. When they played, Carlos Alcaraz won 6-7(5) 7-5 7-6(5) in the semifinal in Madrid (Mutua Madrid Open) on the 7th of May 2022.
Here the video highlights.
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz |
| Embed from Getty Images |