Jimmy Connors has been reviewing all things Wimbledon, following its official conclusion last Sunday.
With Carlos Alcaraz and Barbora Krejčíková the new king and queen of SW19, as the former merely defended his title, now fans will turn their attention towards the Olympics in Paris before the usual ATP action resumes.
And it was the 21-year-old who particularly caught the American’s eye, who even drew comparisons between himself and the young superstar who already has four Grand Slam titles to his name.
Jimmy Connors reacts to Carlos Alcaraz’s Wimbledon title
Speaking on his podcast, Advantage Connors, the former world number one sought to briefly comb over the Wimbledon action before getting back to his golf chat.
Ironically, for someone who built a brilliantly successful career in tennis, it now seems quite far down on his list of priorities.
However, whilst chatting about Alcaraz in particular, he did offer him some huge praise, likening the Spaniard to himself in a way.
He referenced when he usurped his older adversary during his playing career, and claimed: ‘And then Carlos coming through and beating Djokovic. It’s like the old days, when I went in and played [Ken] Rosewall. It’s time for him to go.
‘No disrespect, but I was the new generation coming in, and it seems to me that that’s the way Alcaraz thinks. That he’s the new guy in town and as great as Novak is and has been, he’s 37 years old and he’s had a great run. He’s had his time, but now it’s somebody else’s turn.’
We are in the Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner era now
Unfortunately for Novak Djokovic, it does seem like his era of unparalleled dominance is over.
After all, by this point last season, he had already won two of the three Grand Slam titles and only lost in the final of the other.
But, the difference between then and now has been the rapid development of his two young rivals.
Just to be able to compete with them is impressive enough, but Alcaraz’s progression in 2024, especially given his tough start, has been mesmeric. Now he holds two of the Grand Slam titles, whilst the other is occupied by Sinner, both of whom beat the Serbian on their way to those respective titles in Melbourne and Wimbledon.
There is every chance that he could stage a comeback and win a major, or even the Olympics, but unfortunately for him and the rest of the tour, this duo will only keep on getting better.
Djokovic even admitted he could not keep up with them.
They are set to reign for some time now.
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