Djokovic has not lost a match on Centre Court since 2013 and has won 34 matches in a row at the All England Club ahead of what will be an unmissable final between the two best players in the world. –Jamie Braidwood, The Independent
By Roger Childs
A big weekend in London
The men’s final in this third major of the year will see the Serbian legend match up against the young Spanish upstart. 20 year old Carlos Alcaraz will play Novak Djokovic the 35 year old winner of a record 23 grand slams. Their last meeting was at Roland Garros in June when they contested a semi-final, and in the first two sets they played arguably some of the most brilliant tennis of the twenty-first century.
Unfortunately, Alcaraz had developed severe leg cramps and Djokovic went on to easily win the match.
Hopefully on Monday morning our time, both players will be in great shape throughout the final to determine who is the world number one.
Intriguing ladies’ final in prospect
The top three women seeds made the quarter finals, but none has progressed to the final. Number one Iga Świątek was beaten in the quarter finals and in the same round 2022 finalist Tunisian Ons Jabeur eliminated last year’s winner Elena Rybakina 6-7 6-4 6-1. Jabeur then went on to take out Aryna Sabalenka in the semi-final. Her opponent in the 2023 final will be Czech Markéta Vondroušová.
If the Tunisian can win the final, she will become the first African player to take out a grand slam title. Her form in the earlier rounds has been impressive and she has demonstrated a strong reliable serve and powerful well-placed ground strokes. Like all the top players in 2023 she has also become a master of the drop shot. Her Czech opponent is unseeded and has beaten four seeds on her way to the final. She is in very good form however, Jabeur must be favoured to make history Sunday morning our time.
A classic men’s final
The number one seed, Carlos Alcaraz has been described by one commentator as a wizard. He has no flaws in his game and is possibly the world’s fastest player round the court. His retrievals skills are breath-taking and he frequently produces powerful winners, many from seemingly impossible positions.
He burst onto the ATP scene in 2022 and when he won the US Open in September he became the youngest men’s number one in the history of the game. This year he took the two Spanish tournaments in Barcelona and Madrid, but lost to Djokovic in the semi-final at Roland Garros. In the 2023 Wimbledon semi-final he easily accounted for third seed Daniil Medvedev 6-3 6-3 6-3 and will meet the Serbian legend in the final chasing his 24th grand slam. Like Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic has no weaknesses in his game and despite his age remains very fast round the court. It is hard to pick a favourite in the final, but the Serb probably has the edge on the basis of his long experience of grand slam pressure games.
A great tournament
This year’s Wimbledon has seen tennis of the highest quality in both the gentlemen’s and ladies’ singles. There have been excellent matches and one of the most exciting was between fifth seed Stephanos Tsitsipas and the unseeded African-American Christopher Eubanks. The latter is long and lean, and has one of the best serves in the business. He won in five sets and took the third seed Daniil Medvedev to four closely contested four sets in the quarter finals before running out of steam in the fifth.
The 2023 finals promise to continue the pattern of top quality tennis.