MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Carlos Alcaraz is 22, the youngest man ever to win all four major tennis titles, and he had to accomplish what no man has done before to complete the Grand Slam career in Australia.
Top-ranked Alcaraz dropped the first set of the Australian Open final in 33 minutes on Sunday as Novak Djokovic pushed hard for an unprecedented 25th major title, but the young Spaniard dug deep to win 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5.
“Means the world to me,” Alcaraz said. “It’s a dream come true for me.”
Djokovic had won all ten of his previous finals at Melbourne Park and, despite being 38, gave himself every chance to extend that streak to eleven, needing just two sets to win.
Alcaraz took up the challenge.
“Tennis can change in just one point. One point, one feeling, one shot can completely change the entire match,” he said. “I played well the first set, but you know, for me I had a great and inspired Novak, who played great, great shots.”
A few unforced errors from Djokovic early in the second set gave Alcaraz confidence.
He rushed to get shots that would normally have been game-winners for Djokovic, and he put a lot of pressure on the most decorated player in the history of men’s tennis. There were extended rallies with each player making enough brilliant shots to usually win a game.
Djokovic has turned collecting from precarious positions into an art form. Despite being two sets behind one, he went within the width of a ball in the ninth game of the fourth set that turned this final around.
After fending off six break points in the set, he urged the crowd on as he reached 30-30. The crowd responded with chants of “Nole, Nole, Nole!”
When Djokovic earned a break point opportunity – his first since the second set – he rallied his supporters again. But when Djokovic sent a forehand long on the next point, Alcaraz took that as a delay.
A short forehand winner, a mishit by Alcaraz, clipped the net and landed inside the line, giving him a game point. Then Djokovic hit another forehand long.
Alcaraz responded with a roar and sealed the victory by winning two of the next three matches.
As he left the court, Alcaraz signed the TV camera lens with an acknowledgment: “Job completed. 4/4 Complete.”
Teamwork
After paying tribute to Djokovic at the trophy ceremony for being an inspiration, Alcaraz turned to his support team. At the end of last season he parted ways with longtime coach Juan Carlos Ferrero and Samuel Lopez took charge of the team.
“Nobody knows how hard I worked to get this trophy. I chased this moment so hard,” Alcaraz said. “The preseason was a bit of a rollercoaster emotionally.
“You pushed me every day to do the right things,” he added. “I’m just really grateful for everyone I have in my corner right now.”
Djokovic’s praise
Djokovic joked about this confrontation, which set up a rivalry with Alcaraz for the next decade, but then said it was only right to hand the floor over to the new champion, sixteen years younger.
“I can best describe what you did as historic and legendary,” he said. “So congratulations.”
Both players scored grueling victories in the five-set semifinals – Alcaraz held off No. 3 Alexander Zverev on Friday; from Djokovic victory over two-time defending Australian Open champion Jannik Sinner finished after 1.30am on Saturday – but still showed phenomenal fitness, athleticism and endurance for just over three hours in pursuit of their own historic feats.
Djokovic won his last 24 Grand Slam singles titles at the 2023 US Open, his push for an unprecedented 25th has now been blocked by Alcaraz or Sinner for nine majors.
Rafa in the house
Djokovic and Rafael Nadal played some epic matches, including the longest match ever at the Australian Open which lasted almost six hours in 2012.
Nadal was in the stands on Sunday and both players addressed the 22-time major winner.
“He is my idol, my role model,” Alcaraz said. To round out Slam’s career “for him, it made it even more special.”
Djokovic, who directly addressed Nadal as the “legendary Rafa”, joked that there were “too many Spanish legends” in Rod Laver.
“It felt like it was two against one tonight,” he said.
One for all ages
At 22 years and 272 days, Alcaraz is the youngest man to complete a streak of all four major singles titles. He broke the milestone set by Don Budge at the 1938 French Championships, aged 22 years and 363 days.
He is the ninth man to achieve the career Grand Slam, a list that also includes Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer.
Alcaraz now has seven major titles – his first in Australia, along with two at Wimbledon and the French and US Opens.
AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
