Novak Djokovic was very conscious of the threat that this ATP player posed to him.
Djokovic knows talent when he sees it, having played against some of the greatest players in the history of tennis throughout his decorated career at the top of the sport.
However, as tennis is unpredictable no-one can be exactly sure, and a player Djokovic called very talented has struggled since he made these comments earlier this year.
That felt like more of a future prediction, whereas in this case Djokovic knew exactly how good this Grand Slam semifinalist was.
Aslan Karatsev: The former Grand Slam semifinalist who once beat Novak Djokovic
Djokovic won his ninth Australian Open title in 2021, but to do so he had to beat his qualifier Aslan Karatsev, who reached the semifinals on his Grand Slam main draw debut at 27 years old.
In his run to the last-four in Melbourne, Karatsev knocked out three seeded players in the now-retired Diego Schwartzman, Grigor Dimitrov and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
This was before he ran into the top seed Djokovic, who would end Karatsev’s dream run after beating him, 6-3 6-4 6-2.
That was far from the end of the story for Karatsev, who would get revenge on Djokovic later that year and beat him at his home tournament in Belgrade.
Djokovic would get the last laugh, as he would beat Karatsev in what is their most recent meeting at the Italian Open in 2022.
Despite beating the Russian in straight sets, Djokovic was full of praise for Karatsev’s top level and made a joke about his physique.
“He probably has the biggest calves we have in tennis,” joked Djokovic. “Very strong guy. Solid from the baseline. You never know with him if he’s feeling the ball.
“He can be very dangerous because he stays so close to the line and puts pressure on his opponents. He was missing a lot of balls, though. He gave me a couple of breaks but I will take this win. It’s a straight sets win against a quality opponent and I’m looking forward to the next challenge.”
Djokovic and Karatsev have not crossed paths on the match court since 2022, and their careers have gone in very different directions over the past couple of years.
What has happened to Aslan Karatsev?
After enjoying a breakout season in 2021, Karatsev reached a career-high ranking of world number 14 following winning his third ATP title within the space of 12 months.
Much like his run at the Australian Open, Karatsev has still produced some impressive winning streaks at tournaments since then.
This includes reaching the semifinals of the Madrid Open in 2023, as well as the final of the Japan Open later that year, which is the last ATP final that Karatsev has been in.
However, since then it has been more of a downhill struggle for Karatsev, who has not played in the main draw of a Grand Slam since Wimbledon in 2024 or any ATP main tour event since the Almaty Open in October last year.
Karatsev now mainly competes on the lower-level ATP Challenger Tour and actually fell outside the top 300 last year.
The now 32-year-old did make a brief comeback into the top 200 after winning the ATP Challenger title in Nonthaburi, Thailand, but he has since slipped down to world number 270.
Karatsev has not played a match since August due to injury struggles, and could be at risk of a further fall down the rankings if he does not return to form any time soon.
Receive exclusive tennis news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
