Carlos Alcaraz has made no secret of the fact that he admires Novak Djokovic and sees him as one of the all-time greats of tennis, but the Spaniard gave an interesting reply when he was asked if his great rival is the greatest tennis player in history.

Djokovic completed a lifelong dream at the Paris Olympics as he won gold in the singles for Serbia, defeating Alcaraz 7-6 (7-5), 7-6 (7-2) in the final at Roland Garros.

The win helped Djokovic to become only the fifth player in history to complete the career Golden Slam – winning the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, US Open and Olympic gold.

With the career Golden Slam done and dusted, many believe there is no longer any dispute that he is the GOAT as he holds the record for most Grand Slams won with 24, has spent an incredible 428 weeks at No 1 in the ATP Rankings with Roger Federer a distant third on 310, he has won the most ATP Finals (7), has won 40 ATP Masters titles and leads just about most other metrics.

During an interview with Eurosport in the immediate aftermath of the final, Alcaraz was asked: “Is Djokovic the best tennis player in history?”

The Spaniard admitted that the “numbers don’t lie”.

“There is not a single tournament he hasn’t won. By numbers, I can’t say no. Everything he’s set out to do, he’s achieved,” the four-time Grand Slam winner started off.

And then came the “but”.

“But there are many other factors that enter the fray. I can’t say for me who is the best in history,” he said.

Olympic Tennis News

Paris 2024 men’s singles winners & losers: Novak Djokovic gets his gold – but how will Carlos Alcaraz feel about silver lining?

Novak Djokovic becomes first man to achieve unique Olympic feat as he matches Serena Williams for overall singles record

The reason for the “but” is no doubt due to the fact that he idolizes Rafael Nadal with his compatriot also considered one of the all-time greats along with Federer.

The trio were initially in a tight race to be the greatest tennis player of all time (GOAT), but many feel Djokovic has separated himself with his 24 Grand Slams and record for most weeks at No 1.

One person who doesn’t need convincing that Djokovic is the GOAT is his fellow Serbian and footballer Dusan Vlahovic.

The Juventus striker was part of the tennis great’s Olympic celebrations and stated: “An incredible thing, I’m very glad that I was a part of history and I congratulate Novak.

“I wish him all the luck, I thank him for bringing this gold to Serbia.

“He is our greatest athlete and one of the greatest athletes of all time in general. I’m happy that I was part of history, that he won what he missed. Although as I’ve been saying before this, now let the whole world say he’s officially the GOAT.”

READ NEXT: ‘Novak Djokovic proved me wrong’, admits Slam winner and frequent critic after Paris Olympics triumph