Like all of us, the former world no. 1 Patrick Rafter expects fireworks in the Australian Open clash between Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz! The Aussie noticedan anger in Novak, and that's when he plays his best tennis.
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On the other hand, the serve & volley magician calledCarlos the world's best player. However, Rafter highlighted the Spaniard's sporadic flat lines when he competedbelow his best. Despite that, Patrick gave Alcaraz a slight edge over Djokovic.
Novak is seeking his 25th Major crown and the 11th in Melbourne. He fell to Jannik Sinner in the semi-final a year ago and wants to go two steps further this week. The veteran will likely face top-3 players en route to the title, like in the good old times almost two decades ago!
Djokovic made a shaky start, losing two sets in the opening two rounds. However, the legend raised his level and toppled Tomas Machac and Jiri Lehecka in straight sets en route to his 15th Australian Open quarter-final.
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Alcaraz targets the remaining missing Major title, hoping to accomplish a Career Grand Slam at 21! The Spaniard lost one set in the opening four encounters. He battled past a couple of challenging moments and entered the last eight when Jack Draper retired in the fourth round.
Novak and Carlos will battle at Majors for the first time, with the Serb scoring a win at Roland Garros and the Spaniard celebrating two times at Wimbledon. They will fight at a hard-court Major for the first time, and it should be a cracker.
"Novak is in a good headspace. He is nice and angry, and he likes that. Novak plays his best tennis when he is angry, and he is all fired up. Carlos is the man - he is so good. There is no better player than him. However, things could go wrong for him when he feels a bit flat.
Novak and Carlos should play an unbelievable match, and I can not wait to watch it. One of the greatest players of all time is facing the up-and-comer. I'm not sure who will win, and I do not like to predict.
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I may give Carlos a slight edge because of the past results and that Novak has not had big wins recently," Patrick Rafter said.
