It was a scene that only a few months ago, tennis fans could only dream of, as Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic headed down to Margaret Court Arena to practice five days out from the tournament.
Andy Murray, now retired, was standing side-by-side with his great rival as part of his coaching corner.
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It was a partnership that seemed completely unfathomable when announced, with commentators so confused, they wondered if it was anything more than a publicity stunt.
But, with Murray standing next to Djokovic as he leathered balls back and forth with Alcaraz, the Spanish prodigy (if prodigy is still appropriate at this point), the reality of the situation truly sunk in.
If there is one thing that everyone around Murray says, it is that the man is a thinker. And it was the British great taking the lead in this practice, setting the drills with Alcaraz and determining the timbre of the practice.
"You alternate between down the line and cross-court Novak, while you go cross-court on everything Carlos," Murray said.
"Change balls after this game or after your serve, Carlos," he continued later in the session.
"Up to you Andy," Alcaraz responded.
The vibe was very much affable throughout the practice. For all the talk of their intense rivalry, it is clear that Alcaraz and Djokovic genuinely respect each other and conducted the practice in good spirits, if anything, lacking slightly in the intensity that will be expected upon themselves as the Open draws nearer.
The two were talking to each other in between warm-ups, with Djokovic postulating to Alcaraz that the court at Margaret Court Arena was playing slower than Rod Laver Arena, where both will play the vast majority if not all of their matches, whereas Alcaraz believed it was playing faster.
At one point, Djokovic joked that Alcaraz had never faced Murray in his prime, and so he hadn’t faced the same challenges the Serbian former world No.1 had.
As a member of his team hit the ball to him, which struck him below the belt, Djokovic jokingly shouted, "Bullseye!".
Speaking of Murray, even from a brief view of the practice, it was clear how much the Brit was itching to return to the court. In between points he was serving into the edge of the court and shadow-hitting his backhand. After doing so, he complained about pain in his shoulder, a glaring reminder of his recent retirement.
As for the tennis, Djokovic took the set, but the score was less material than the way the set was played. Alcaraz was playing with his trademark flair and panache, hitting behind-the-back shots in a spectator-less arena, while Djokovic was solid as he traded powerful groundstrokes with the Spaniard.
The rallies were guttural and intense, showing the skill of both, which they could pull out with a whim. They didn’t quite have the intensity of Jannik Sinner, who was blistering his way through a charity match with Alexei Popyrin on Rod Laver Arena, but they weren’t far off.
Djokovic’s movement was not at its absolute peak, but there’s no doubt this will come by the Open.
One thing is for sure; between the new 'Big 3', this is anyone’s game.
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