Carlos Alcarazwho plays this Tuesday (10:30, Eurosport) against the local Álex de Miñaur (6th in the world) to get into the semifinals, is a prodigious tennis player. Most shots come with quality and precision from your racket innately. But if there is one that he has not executed so naturally from the beginning, it is the serve. That is why he has always put a lot of work and special attention into an aspect of the game that has become increasingly important in tennis. In the preseason last year, the Murcian introduced a change in movement to make it more fluid, without stops. And he practiced throwing the ball with an exercise that he proposed Samuel Lopeznow his main coach after the break with Juan Carlos Ferrerowhich went viral, with the help of a small basketball basket. Before competing this year in the Open the Australiathey repeated it and gave another twist to the mechanics: a slightly more relaxed posture and the ball in the arch of the racket instead of in the neck, both higher, almost at the height of the torso. Now it is very similar, at least apparently, to the one used Novak Djokovic.
Novak Djokovic on how he feels and Carlos Alcaraz copying his serve:
Djokovic: “As soon as I saw Carlos’ serve I sent him a message. Every ace he hits, I expect a tribute to me. Let’s see if he’s going to stick to the agreement.” 😂pic.twitter.com/uGhJN1UN8D
— Danny (@DjokovicFan_) January 19, 2026
“You mean it’s very similar. I know you want to do it,” he joked. Alcaraz with a journalist before the start of the tournament. “I didn’t think about doing the same thing as Aile. But in the end, even I see the similarities,” he acknowledged. Days later, the Serbian also took the comparison a little funny. “I hope he rewards me for every ace I make, that he gives me part of his winnings.” “Yes, I have the contract there in the bag. I have already signed it, I have to give it to him,” he replied. Carlos. “We haven’t talked much about it either, but he did send me a message in preseason and I found it funny.”
The point is that Alcarazwhich faces this Tuesday (around 10:45, Eurosport) in quarterfinals to the Australian Alex de Minaur (26 years and 6th) with a very favorable head-to-head (5-0), he is happy with his new style. “I think it went very well. In fact, I would say that it was one of the best things I have done in the match, or at least that is my feeling in terms of blows,” he explained after beating Corentin Moutet in third round. “It has not been a particularly thoughtful change. We players are making small adjustments naturally and, little by little, I became very comfortable with this mechanics and with this movement,” he added.
Statistics in hand, his best performance in terms of serve was in the round of 16 against Tommy Paulwith 70% effectiveness with first, 79% points won with them and 68% with seconds. And he only faced two break points, although he was unable to save one of them. “In the end, the objective was to serve without force, with a lot of calm and tranquility in the gesture, and I think we have achieved it in this way. I feel comfortable. It is something that little by little I will improve, but today I am happy with it,” he insists. Carloswho still sees “a lot of room for improvement.” “The good thing about such smooth, clean and simple mechanics is that, when I sometimes get stuck on the serve and I don’t really know what to do, the clear thought is to keep it simple.”
Many people insist on comparing their current mechanics with that of Djokovic. Even he admits that he looks alike. “I saw a video and it is true that there is a lot of similarity. He serves very well and has a very simple gesture, something that I have always liked. That does not mean that I changed my serve by focusing on it directly, but that, when making adjustments, I felt comfortable in this way and that is how I serve now. It was not a conscious imitation.”
Discrepancies
But not everyone agrees. Feliciano López, the best server in the history of Spanish tennis and fourth on the international aces list (10,261), believes that, in reality, the services of Alcaraz y Djokovic They don’t have much to do with it. “The difference in the service is marked by the position of the feet. Novak it is propelled with both at the same time, while Carlos Drag the right before hitting the ball. Where you place the ball on the racket before throwing it doesn’t matter as much. Not even that the movement or position of the arms are similar,” explains the man from Toledo. “I don’t want to ruin the comparison, but I don’t see it and it doesn’t seem significant to me,” he says.
Danilo Molesinicoach of the Italian Tennis Federationcoincide con Feliciano at that point, but he does find others in common: the touch of the ball with the strings, the beginning of the movement with the wrist relaxed, the arch of the back and the pronation (footstep) after contact. The debate is served.
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