ATP Finals 2023 Highlights: Novak Djokovic sees off Carlos Alcaraz to reach ninth final

Welcome to Khel Now's live blog for the Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz semi-final match in ATP Finals 2023.

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will be meeting for the fifth time on the ATP tour in the semifinals of the Nitto ATP Finals 2023 on Saturday. They both survived early scares and the risk of elimination to progress to the knockout stage of the year-ending event. Carlos Alcaraz vs Novak Djokovic will be the second semi-final on Saturday.

Their first meet in Madrid in 2022 showcased Alcaraz’s talent for the game, where the new talent bested countryman Nadal and Djokovic in the same event. The 20-year-old World No. 2 set up the semifinal showdown with the six-time champion with a win over Daniil Medvedev, who was unbeaten until then.

Carlos Alcaraz vs Novak Djokovic Preview

Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic had a shaky start to their Nitto ATP Finals 2023 campaign. Djokovic won his first game against Holger Rune but lost the next match to Jannik Sinner. He went on to defeat Hubert Hurkacz in the final round Robin fixture but had to wait for the result of the Sinner-Rune match to learn of his fate. Sinner won, thus sending Djokovic through. 

Alcaraz, too, did not have the ideal start, losing to Alexander Zverev, before regrouping to defeat Andrey Rublev and Daniil Medvedev in back-to-back meetings to clinch his semifinal spot and take over the lead in the Red Group.

Head-to-head records

Matches Played – 4

Carlos Alcaraz – 2

Novak Djokovic – 2

Djokovic and Alcaraz are 2-2 overall and 2-1 in 2023. Djokovic beat Alcaraz in the French Open quarter-final stage and the ATP Masters 1000 event in Cincinnati. Alcaraz won at Wimbledon in 2023 in a marathon five-setter, usually Djokovic’s forte. Djokovic is 13-3 against the top 10 and 33-1 on hard courts this season. 

When Alcaraz won at Wimbledon, he denied the World No. 1 the chance to be the first man since Rod Laver to win a calendar Slam. That title was Alcaraz’s sole Grand Slam win of the 2023 season, as Djokovic claimed the remaining three major tournaments. 

The last time Alcaraz and Djokovic crossed swords was at the 2023 Cincinnati Masters final, an occasion on which the Serbian prevailed in three sets in a game that took nearly four hours to complete.

Prediction

Six-time ATP Finals champion, Novak Djokovic, will be looking to win his seventh ATP final trophy, giving him the extra motivation he needs to go all the way. Alcaraz will be looking to recover from a string of losses and early exits at recent events and win his first tournament since the Wimbledon title he held aloft in July this year.

The 20-year-old is the youngest semifinalist at the ATP Finals since Rafael Nadal in 2006 and has a chance to win the Nitto ATP Finals on debut.

Both players are known to bring their A-game when the chips are down and will be looking to cap off the 2023 season on a high note. Carlos Alcaraz may just have the edge in the game against Djokovic from the confidence boost by reaching the semifinals on his own steam, while Djokovic’s fate was out of his hands, relying on the outcome of the Sinner-Rune match to progress to the semifinals.

Jannik Sinner and Daniil Medvedev will meet in the first semifinal on Saturday in an encounter where fans can expect some fireworks. Hometown favourite Sinner has narrowed their head-to-head gap from 0-6 to 2-6, with back-to-back wins at Beijing and Vienna. They have each won twice of the four occasions they played each other in 2023.

Sinner is also undefeated this far in the tournament, winning all three of his matches. The Russian will have to battle both Sinner’s form and the partisan crowd on Saturday.