Although it is the revenge he has waited a year for, only a few days ago Novak Djokovic believed he could face Carlos Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final. When the 37-year-old underwent surgery on a torn medial meniscus in his right knee on June 5, it was assumed that the seven-time champion would miss the tournament he values ​​above all others. There were doubts, he admitted, but because it was Wimbledon, Djokovic did everything he could to compete. “I wasn’t thinking about the eventual title match, especially in the first few matches,” he said. And yet here we go again.

Alcaraz is the only player to have beaten Djokovic in his last 51 matches on Centre Court. His epic five-set victory in last year’s final ended a run of four consecutive Wimbledon titles. The 21-year-old Spaniard will be the favourite when he faces Djokovic in the rematch, partly because of the Serb’s knee and the questions still lingering over his fitness, but also because Alcaraz has inherited Djokovic’s skill of inevitability since winning the title last year. If you can beat Djokovic once on Centre Court, you can do it again, and Alcaraz is a stronger, more confident player than he was 12 months ago.

Djokovic sees similarities between himself and his younger opponent. He believes Alcaraz is “as complete a player as you can be” and said after last year’s final that the Spaniard’s game was a perfect blend of the sport’s “Big Three”. It is fitting, then, that Alcaraz is trying to become the first player since Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same summer, in one of the sport’s toughest challenges. “I’m going to have to do my best to beat him,” Djokovic said.

There is no lack of motivation. Djokovic will be out for revenge and history is at stake: he will win his eighth men’s title alongside Federer, which is a record, and he will surpass Margaret Court with his 25th Grand Slam title, just one win away. But is Djokovic capable of reaching the level needed to beat Alcaraz so soon after his surgery? Lorenzo Musetti insisted that he played against the best version of Djokovic after his straight-sets semifinal loss. “He showed that he is in top form, not only in tennis,” Musetti said. “In the end, the way he came back was a joke.”

Djokovic, however, benefited from the more favorable draw. He has never played against an opponent who put him under as much pressure as Alcaraz. “He already beat me here in a Wimbledon final in a five-set thriller, so I expect nothing less than a tough fight,” Djokovic said. And that’s exactly what Alcaraz loves, by the way. “I try not to think that I’m the defending champion,” he said. “I just go into every match with the thought that of course I have a chance to lose. Every match is a war.”

It was a challenging tournament for Alcaraz too, a little different from his path to the final last year, where everything was so relaxed and carefree. But the champion, who now has something to lose, has become so difficult to beat: Although Alcaraz has not won in straight sets since the second round and lost the first set in three of his last four matches before returning to the final, the Spaniard has developed enormous confidence that he can get out of any hole he finds himself in. He managed that in the Wimbledon final last year, of course, but that confidence has only grown since his victory at the French Open last month.

At Roland Garros, Alcaraz was down 2-1 in the semifinals against Jannik Sinner and 2-1 in the final against Alexander Zverev, but he came back to win the fourth and fifth sets and claim his third Grand Slam title. His fifth-set record improved to 12-1 and his only loss when matches went the full distance came as an 18-year-old against Matteo Berrettini in the third round of the Australian Open. Aside from his captivating style and the stunning winners he conjured up from the most unlikely positions on the court, the only thing that has become predictable about Alcaraz’s game is his ability to hit back.

And yet, for such a complete player, who knows all the tricks and weapons, it is remarkable that Alcaraz had to come from behind so often. On the court, there were signs that Alcaraz sometimes finds it all a little too easy, as if he gets bored of following the routine, sensible shots.

Alcaraz put that down to nerves, which he has talked about throughout the championships. “When you don’t have it under control, it’s difficult to play your best tennis or handle the situations,” he said after beating Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals, where he lost the first set in a tiebreak. “I struggled to keep my service games calm,” he said. “I was in a rush. I was nervous. Daniil controlled the game.”

But for Alcaraz, the key to overcoming such difficult moments in a sport that demands perfection in a number of complex areas is deceptively simple: tennis is a game, and games are meant to be fun. Alcaraz wants to have fun and will continue to bet on the sublime winners because that’s how he plays his best tennis. “Sometimes it’s a disaster,” Alcaraz said. “But it helps me a lot to relax and smile that I’m having fun on the court.” After five sets, Alcaraz knows he has time to calm down and find the momentum needed to turn the match around.

And so Djokovic will once again face the Smiling Killer, the most dangerous opponent he has ever faced and one who has defied him in the fifth set of a Grand Slam and won. For Djokovic, however, who was the underdog this time, a victory against the Centre Court crowd and the new Wimbledon favourite would rarely have tasted so sweet.

Coverage of the men’s final begins at 1pm on BBC1 on Sunday 13 July, with the match kicking off at 2pm.