Andy Roddick has explained what contributed to Novak Djokovic losing the Wimbledon final.
The Serbian came up short in his quest for a 25th Grand Slam title after suffering a straight sets defeat to Carlos Alcaraz.
It was remarkable that the 37-year-old made it to the All-England Club given he had knee surgery just over a month ago.
Despite seeming relatively untroubled by the knee throughout the tournament, Djokovic cruised to the championship match but beating Alcaraz was a step too far.
Andy Roddick shares why Novak Djokovic lost to Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon
Djokovic had a difficult start to the final as he lost his first service game of the match and it was an uphill battle from there.
He implemented a different style by coming to the net more and going for the winner earlier in rallies, but it was the Serbian’s downfall.
Djokovic won just four games over the first two sets and though he showed some fight in the third, Alcaraz strolled to a 6-2, 6-2, 7-6(4) win.
Explaining what contributed to the loss, Roddick said on his ‘Served Podcast’: “The knee was fine, the movement looked good but to be rushed, he didn’t have any time to train physically before this tournament.
“Carlos can hit every shot in the book. He doesn’t always make them but he can hit. You have to have your movement, respect the threat of every direction on every shot, that is a different mental hurdle.
“If you haven’t had the time to build yourself physically, not if your knee is healthy but you have to have reps and when you get to the highest level, those things tend to expose themselves a little quicker.”
Will Novak Djokovic play at Wimbledon again?
Alcaraz became the first person to defeat Djokovic in successive Wimbledon finals, something even Roger Federer was unable to accomplish.
Though he did not succeed in lifting the title for an eighth time, the World number two is proud of his tournament given the injury he sustained so close to the tournament.
He also plans to continue playing at the Grand Slam, as he said: “As far as coming back here, I mean, I would love to.
“I don’t have anything else in my thoughts right now that this is my last Wimbledon. I really want to play at least whatever, I don’t know.
“I don’t have any limitations in my mind. I still want to keep going and play as long as I feel like I can play on this high level.”
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