Novak Djokovic
Djokovic believes Alcaraz can ‘surf’
Serbian shares thoughts on Espanyol’s winning streak
March 8, 2026
ATP Tour and Getty Images
Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz compete at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday.
Written by ATP Staff
Few people understand long winning streaks like Novak Djokovic.
The Serbian opened the 2011 season with a record 41-game winning streak, one of the most dominant streaks in the history of the sport. Now he’s watching Carlos Alcaraz build momentum as the 22-year-old rides a 13-match winning streak, including beating Djokovic in the Australian Open final.
“When you win so much and you’re riding a wave, you don’t want to let that wave go,” Djokovic said at the BNP Paribas Open on Saturday. “You want to be on the wave for as long as possible because the confidence level is really high.”
The 101-time Tour-level winner believes Alcaraz has the tools to move forward.
“He can do it,” Djokovic said. “He has everything he needs to play, the adaptability to different surfaces and the level of fitness and recovery that he has shown and matured over the years.
“He needs to stay healthy. If he stays healthy, he can win any game he plays.”
But Djokovic hopes to be the one to end his opponent’s streak. The five-time Indian Wells champion will face Alcaraz in the semi-finals, a match that ultimately broke their 5-5 Lexus ATP head-to-head series tie.
Djokovic returned to action for the first time since his loss in Melbourne, defeating Kamil Makhzak 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 at the ATP Masters 1000 event in Indian Wells.
“It’s great to be back on tour,” Djokovic said. “With five weeks of no official racing, I knew the first race in so long was going to be a bit tricky and challenging, with quite challenging conditions.
“But after losing the first set in the second set, I managed to reset and never looked back.”
