With Carlos Alcaraz's Italian Open withdrawal, can Novak Djokovic end his 2024 title drought in Rome?

Novak Djokovic is going to play at the Italian Open that gets underway in Rome next week (April 10-18). It is one of his favorite tournaments, as he won the title six times there.

Djokovic has won no other title on clay as many times as he has in Rome. Hence, he will target to attain glory on Italian soil yet another time.

Djokovic’s recent form has not been impressive

The Serb, who is going to be 37 this month, is going through a rough patch — at least by his lofty standards — at the moment. The 24-time Grand Slam champion is yet to win a title this year. He has lost to Jannik Sinner at the Australian Open, to Luca Nardi at the Indian Wells Open, and to Casper Ruud at the Monte-Carlo Masters.

Djokovic does not usually lose at the Australian Open. He rarely loses to Ruud either. However, both of the above have taken place this year. Hence, most of his supporters are a bit apprehensive about the possibility of the reign of the World No. 1 coming to an end, especially when he is not getting any younger.

Moreover, Djokovic's form at the Italian Open will be a fair indicator of the kind of performance he is going to come up with at the French Open.

Carlos Alcaraz's withdrawal from Rome might help the Serb

Carlos Alcaraz, who is not in great form himself, has withdrawn from the Italian Open this year. While that means that Novak Djokovic will have to worry about one fewer opponent, it is unlikely to make his job much easier.

Alcaraz has found himself in trouble against big-hitters quite frequently in the recent past and hence, he might have struggled to go deep into the Masters 1000 tournament in Rome. Alcaraz and Djokovic have had some epic clashes in the past, but he was not going to be the Serb’s only concern by any means.

There will be Sinner, who has been Djokovic’s nemesis of late, and there will be Medvedev, the defending champion in the Italian capital. There will also be solid players like Ruud and Andrey Rublev, with their ability to strike the ball well. Then there is Rafael Nadal, who has not been able to go deep either in Barcelona or Madrid but still can be a force on clay. After all, the Spaniard is called the 'King of Clay.'

It is difficult to beat Djokovic in a battle of attrition even at his age. Moreover, it has to be kept in mind that the conditions in Rome will not be ultra-slow like in Monte-Carlo or considerably faster, as in Madrid. It will be quite similar to the conditions at Roland Garros. Hence, he might be able to win it for the seventh time after all.

However, his primary goal will be to win his 25th Major in Paris and therefore, he should not be willing to over-exert himself at the Italian Open.