In the short amount of time he has spent at the top of his sport, Carlos Alcaraz has already enjoyed a career with few comparisons. He has won big titles at a faster rate than all but a couple of 21-year-olds in history and he has barely scratched at the surface of his talents. With every new triumph, he is closer to becoming the dominant force in his sport.
That moment may have just arrived. A year after wresting the Wimbledon title from Novak Djokovic’s grasp in five breathless sets, Alcaraz produced an incredible performance under pressure to dismantle the seven-time champion Djokovic 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4) and triumph at Wimbledon for a second year in a row. Alcaraz is now four-time grand slam title winner and he joins Roger Federer as the only men to win their first four grand slam finals.
With this victory, Alcaraz becomes just the sixth player have won the men’s titles at Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year, known colloquially as the “Channel Slam”. This is also Alcaraz’s first grand slam title defence and it marks the first time he has won multiple slam titles in the same calendar year.
“It’s a huge honour for me to be part of those players who have achieved Roland Garros and Wimbledon in the same year,” Alcaraz said of matching Rod Laver, Björn Borg, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and Djokovic. “Really glad to be in the same table as Novak to do it. Huge champions; I don’t consider myself a champion yet, not as them, but I try to keep going, to keep building my path, my journey.”
After tearing his meniscus during the French Open and quickly undergoing surgery, Djokovic’s run to the final was a significant achievement in itself. But the 37-year-old had also reached the final without facing a top‑10 opponent – the ninth seed Alex de Minaur withdrew before their quarter-final – meaning he had not been tested by one of the elite.
More importantly, nothing in Djokovic’s path to the final prepared him for the extravagant ball‑striking, variety and suffocating intensity with which Alcaraz plays.
From the start, Djokovic was terrified of trading with Alcaraz from the baseline. He tried to shorten points by approaching the net as early as possible but Alcaraz picked him off whenever he tried to approach. By the time the Spaniard led 6-2, 2-0, Djokovic had won just four points of his 14 net approaches.
As Alcaraz established a formidable lead, he struck the ball with increasing freedom, launching himself into nuclear forehands, closing down the net and keeping Djokovic guessing with a steady helping of drop shots. Time after time, Alcaraz forced his opponent to scramble in his forehand corner, making Djokovic defend on his vulnerable right knee in a way that none of his previous opponents had done.
It was not until Djokovic trailed by two sets that he finally began to serve well and string holds together. Still, the momentum shifted only as Alcaraz reached 5-4, 40-0 on his serve. The three championship points were quickly erased, with help from a spectator who screamed just before Alcaraz overhit a forehand drive volley on the third. Two forehand errors later, they were tied at 5-5.
“It was 40-0 but I was seeing so far away,” Alcaraz said. “Novak is an unbelievable fighter. I knew that he was going to have his chances again so I had to stay there.”
To his immense credit, Alcaraz did not move. He held serve, forced a tie-break and resumed control of the match. At 5-4, two service points from victory, Alcaraz had the audacity to attempt an inch-perfect drop‑shot winner to reach championship point again. This time, he held his nerve to close out a brilliant win.
Despite holding two grand slam titles, Alcaraz will not rise above his current ranking of No 3, behind Djokovic and Jannik Sinner. While the Spaniard has regularly shown his brilliance over the past two years, the next step in his career has been to learn how to do so week after week while also remaining healthy.
Over the past two months, Alcaraz has navigated the forearm injury that badly hurt his Roland Garros preparation, the difficult surface transition from clay to grass and the growing physical and mental fatigue that comes with going deep in tournaments. Still, he found a way to end both tournaments triumphantly. In the coming years, he will only grow more accustomed to winning under all circumstances.
Considering he does not experience the sensation very often, Djokovic is a great loser. After both players were presented their trophies by the Princess of Wales, in her second public appearance since announcing her cancer diagnosis, Djokovic delivered his consolation speech with typical grace.
“Credit to Carlos for really playing some amazing tennis, very complete tennis from the back of the court, serve,” he said. “He had it all today. I tried to push him, save the three match points and extend the match a little bit but it wasn’t meant to be. He was an absolutely deserved winner today so congratulations to him.”
As he celebrated another tremendous achievement, the victory allowed Alcaraz to shift his attention towards Berlin for Spain’s Euro 2024 final against England, which presented the opportunity for Sunday to mark a majestic moment in Spanish sport: “I’ve already done my job,” he said. “So let’s see in the football.”
Source: theguardian.com
