- - Australian Open: Novak Djokovic may be the greatest now, but Carlos Alcaraz is coming for his GOAT status

Dan Wolken February 1, 2026 at 10:36 PM

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Carlos Alcaraz kisses the trophy after beating Novak Djokovic to win the Australian Open. (IZHAR KHAN / AFP via Getty Images) (IZHAR KHAN via Getty Images)

Now that he has won the Australian Open, now that he is the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam, now that the major title count is at No. 7 with so much career runway to go, we no longer need to be afraid of saying what is obvious.

Novak Djokovic may currently stand as the greatest and most accomplished tennis player of all time, but Carlos Alcaraz is the most gifted person who has ever held a racket.

We are watching Michael Jordan in 1992, Tiger Woods in 2000, Secretariat in 1973. The job is not done, the résumé is still evolving, and the records are not yet theirs.

But our eyes do not deceive us.

This smiling Spanish prodigy, this whirling dervish of speed and power and mental genius, has crossed the threshold between what we thought he could be and what he really is: An absolute monster whose entire package of skills is unequaled by anyone who has ever played tennis.

As someone who grew up on Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, who cherished how Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal changed the sport and who has grown to appreciate the way Djokovic maintained his body and evolved his game to stay relevant into his late 30s, I don’t think that’s hyperbole.

Alcaraz has everything. He is him. And he’s only going to get better.

Alcaraz’s 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 victory in Sunday’s Australian Open final looked the way it probably should have looked between a 22-year-old and a 38-year-old who both played five-set marathons in the semifinals. Djokovic came out on fire, playing arguably one of the best sets of his career, and then began to fade as the younger man imposed his superior physicality. Alcaraz took the punch, started to work Djokovic into the corners and steadily asserted control over the proceedings. In the end, it wasn’t all that close.

Despite what was on the line in this match — the career Slam versus Djokovic becoming the oldest man in the Open Era to win a major — starting to think about Alcaraz’s place among the all-time greats is not based on this one match. Nor was this Australian final the passing-of-the-torch moment because that happened long before now.

This is about Alcaraz, now having conquered all four tournaments that define tennis greatness, thrusting himself into different conversations. Two years ago, he was picking off majors while working around his flaws. Now, he has none.

It has been a bit cliché to say that Alcaraz combines the best attributes of the Big Three — Roger Federer’s creativity and flair, Nadal’s competitive spirit and Djokovic’s technical mastery. But there’s really no case against it. Alcaraz already had all the shots and world-class athleticism when he came on tour as a teenager. But as he’s grown up, Alcaraz has added so many layers to his tactical development and sharpened his in-match concentration that it brings to mind what Bobby Jones said in 1965 about Jack Nicklaus, who in turn used the same phrase about Tiger Woods: “He plays a game with which I am not familiar.”

Spain's Carlos Alcaraz (R) speaks with Serbia's Novak Djokovic after victory during their men's singles final at the Australian Open. (Paul Crock / AFP via Getty Images) (PAUL CROCK via Getty Images)

When Nicklaus said that, Woods was on his way to winning his fifth major at the 2000 PGA Championship. At that moment, it seemed a given he would surpass Nicklaus’ record of 18.

As we know now, that never happened. Injuries and self-inflicted adversity got in the way, leaving Woods with 15. But for those fortunate enough to remember Woods’ peak, the golf we watched him play was simply better than anything anyone had ever seen.

That’s where we are with Alcaraz now. This level of tennis is something completely new and different, and it comes from a young man in a big hurry to rewrite the history of the sport.

Already, he is in a club with just nine names: Djokovic, Nadal, Federer, Agassi, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver, Don Budge and Fred Perry are the only men who won all four Slams.

What we don’t know yet is whether 24 majors — the most sacred of Djokovic’s many records — will eventually come into play. The gap is still huge, and so many things can happen, from injuries to major life changes to motivation to another all-time great coming along whose name we don’t yet know.

But at the rate he’s going, Alcaraz would need to average two majors per year until he’s 31 to break the record. It’s crazy to say, given how hard these tournaments are to win, but that feels firmly within the realm of possibility because there really are no more questions for Alcaraz to answer.

Could he win on all surfaces? Yes. Could he eliminate the dips in focus that made things more complicated than they needed to be earlier in his career? It was only a matter of time. Could he turn his serve from a decent shot into a weapon? It happened in one offseason. Could he do it without Juan Carlos Ferrero in his coaching box? Well, he just did.

That last one may not resonate much with casual fans, but the story of tennis’ offseason was Alcaraz separating from the coach who essentially raised him. This was more than just a professional relationship. Ferrero was almost like a second father, and his presence in the biggest moments often seemed like the support blanket Alcaraz needed when he was forced to manage stressful situations.

The details of their break-up are still murky, but they don’t matter much. It was just another hurdle for Alcaraz to conquer, and he went to Australia and cleared it with ease. His semifinal win over Alexander Zverev, breaking serve in the fifth set to stay in the tournament, was maybe the most mentally tough victory of his young career.

So what’s next? What’s remaining?

Just the history left to be made, and putting the numbers behind what our eyes tell us.

While Djokovic, for now, is still the greatest of all time, Alcaraz is the best thing tennis has ever seen.

Original Article on Source

Source: “AOL Sports”