World number one Alcaraz showed remarkable resilience, coming back from losing the first set and saving a set point in the second.
The match ended in an intense tussle on Center Court that lasted four hours and 42 minutes.
At just 20, Alcaraz became Wimbledon’s third-youngest men’s champion, adding to his previous major at the US Open last year. The result has sparked talk of a possible generational change, with Djokovic, 36, carrying the torch for the ‘Big Three’ in the absence of the now-retired Roger Federer and a potentially sidelined Rafael Nadal.
Djokovic, the reigning Australian Open and French Open champion, was aiming to match Federer’s record of eight Wimbledon titles and Margaret Court’s all-time record of 24 Grand Slam wins.
Alcaraz’s victory is a significant milestone, considering that Djokovic was just months away from turning five when he won his first major at the 2008 Australian Open.
For Djokovic, this Wimbledon final was his ninth appearance on Center Court and 35th at a Grand Slam tournament, while Alcaraz experienced only his second major final after winning the US Open. Djokovic had enjoyed an undefeated run on Center Court since his 2013 final loss to Andy Murray, displaying impeccable accuracy in the first set.
However, Alcaraz overcame his early struggles and held a crucial break in the second set to take a 2–1 lead. Djokovic immediately responded with a break of his own but faced a set point in a tense tie-break.
Alcaraz seized the opportunity and leveled the match with a brilliant backhand winner, ending Djokovic’s streak of 15 consecutive tie-break wins at Grand Slam events.
In the third set, Alcaraz continued his momentum, breaking Djokovic’s serve in the opening game, and continued to struggle in the fifth game, which lasted 26 minutes and saw 13 deuces.
Djokovic saved several break points but eventually lost on the seventh, giving Alcaraz a 2–1 set lead. The Spaniard consolidated his lead with a quick service game and broke Djokovic once again, leaving the defending champion down two sets to one.
Anger flared as Djokovic became embroiled in an altercation with umpire Fergus Murphy over shot clock monitoring. Additionally, he alienated the crowd by taking an extended toilet break before the fourth set. Amazingly, the break worked in Djokovic’s favor as he broke Alcaraz twice and leveled the match with the Spaniard’s seventh double fault in the final.
In the deciding fifth set, Djokovic missed a golden opportunity to take a 2–0 lead, allowing Alcaraz to take advantage and take a 2–1 lead. A frustrated Djokovic suffered another code violation for hitting his racket against the net post, and subsequently found himself trailing 3–1. Strong and determined, Alcaraz sealed his remarkable victory when Djokovic sent a forehand into the net to seal his place in history.
