Novak Djokovic served warning of surprise Wimbledon threat as resurgent star gears up for mouth-watering Alcaraz match

Carlos Alcaraz has been deemed as the only true contender to probably end Novak Djokovic's reign at Wimbledon in 2023. The Spaniard has shown an improved performance on grass where he has already picked his maiden title at the Queen's before matching his best ever run at the SW19 by reaching the round of 16 for the second consecutive time in his career. However, on Saturday, former US Open finalist Alexander Zverev warned Djokovic of a surprise threat in his Wimbledon run, naming a resurgent star who now falls in Alcaraz's route. (Wimbledon 2023 Live Updates Day 7)

Zverev's bid to a third ever fourth-round appearance at the Wimbledon was halted late on Sunday night as 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini, who had missed the last edition after testing positive for Covid, scripted a straight-set win to reach the last 16. Berrettini earlier defeated Alex De Minaur and Lorenzo Sonego to reach the pre-quarters for the third time at the All England Club.

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Impressed with his run, Zverev served a warning to not just Djokovic but other competitors still alive in the competition saying that Berrettini has emerged to become a title contender.

The German said: "I told him that he can win the tournament if he plays like this, in my opinion. Of course, there are other players that are great. He's playing [Carlos] Alcaraz next. I think he's a great player as well. But if he plays like this, to be honest, he has chances against anybody."

But well ahead of a rematch of the 2021 final, the Italian faces Alcaraz in a mouth-watering round of 16 clash. This will be their third meeting in ATP tour and first on grass and although the Spaniard leads the head-to-head tie by 2-1, the Italian won their only Grand Slam meeting, at Australian Open in 2022.

Responding to Zverev's claim in the press conference, Berrettini said: "I thanked [Zverev] already. I have to say I felt really good, but I know this is something I don't have to think about right now. The attitude is going to be the same. Every match is really tough. Today I played good, but doesn't mean anything in terms of winning the tournament.”

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