NOVAK Djokovic avenged his Wimbledon final defeat to Carlos Alcaraz by beating the Spaniard in just under four hours to win the Cincinnati Open.
The Serb survived match point in the second set before going on to win 5-7 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (7-4).
Top seed, Alcaraz, beats Djokovic in five sets in last month’s Wimbledon final.
Djokovic compared the draining win to his Australian Open final victory in 2012, when he defeated Nadal in five hours and 53 minutes.
Despite the defeat, Alcaraz will keep the world number one ranking for his US Open title defence.
However, Djokovic will return to the top of the rankings if he wins just one match at Flushing Meadows.
The world number two moved ahead of Nadal in the all-time men’s major list after winning his 23rd Grand Slam title at June’s French Open, where he overcame Alcaraz in the semi-finals.
Djokovic and Nadal have faced each other 59 times over the past 17 years, while Alcaraz has played just four matches against Djokovic and is tied with the 36-year-old at 2-2. –BBC
