Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz hits the high road to greatness in tennis

Carlo Alcaraz’s Wimbledon triumph wasn’t unexpected. His boundless talent had fetched three grand slam titles at 21 as he arrived in Wimbledon searching for a channel slam (back-to-back French Open and All-England titles). Sunday’s win on the hallowed turf of the All England Lawn Tennis Club reaffirms his status as the present and future of tennis, which Novak Djokovic acknowledged at the end of the one-sided final on Sunday (July 14).

Coming into Wimbledon as defending champion and fresh from his French Open win, Alcaraz was seeded third behind Jannik Sinner and Djokovic. His form through the fortnight was not encouraging as the Spaniard struggled to notch wins and even came close to a third-round elimination at the hands of Frances Tifoe.

All those worries about Alcaraz’s form evaporated in the final as he cranked up his game. He needed to. Djokovic had shown no signs of discomfort from his recent knee surgery, routing Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, 22, in the semifinal with power and precision. After all, he’s an all-time great, and 24 grand slam titles are ample proof of the Serbian’s ability to withstand the searing heat in the cauldron of tennis.

How Alcaraz is different from the brat pack

Djokovic is 37, but age hasn’t withered his tennis. Nor his fitness. His three major wins last year showed us that the Serbian can joust with the new generation of players. But Alcaraz is different. He’s a talent destined to dominate tennis, much like the Big Three of Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Djokovic.

When the trio were busy swapping grand slam titles, only Britain’s Andy Murray could break their stranglehold. That too, only briefly. The major wins of Stan Wawrinka and others seemed more like an aberration that the question of who’s next after the Big Three went unanswered. Daniil Medvedev and Dominic Thiem snatched US Open titles in between but could never lord over men’s tennis.

Thiem seems to have faded away, but Medvedev remains a threat without adding to his lone major win of 2021. Here’s where Alcaraz stands out. The 2022 US Open win was followed by his maiden Wimbledon title last year. After an extended period of patchy performances, which saw the rise of Sinner, the winner at the 2024 Australian Open, Alcaraz got his act together at Roland Garros.

Spanish tennis players are raised on clay, and Nadal’s record of 14 French Open titles is overwhelming evidence. Alcaraz was merely following in his compatriot’s footsteps with the win this year. The question was: Will he complete the French Open-Wimbledon double? Can he adapt to the grass courts in two weeks? Rod Laver (1962, 1969), Bjorn Borg (1978, 1979, 1980), Nadal (2008, 2010), Federer (2009) and Djokovic (2021) have done it. So did Alcaraz.

Djokovic’s tactics in Sunday’s final was a tribute to Alcaraz’s burgeoning talent. The Serbian master of the backcourt altered his game to throw his rival off balance, approaching the net more often than usual. The Spaniard gambled by opting to receive first and won the 14-minute opening game. The service break broke Djokovic, who served up a slew of uncharacteristic errors, while Alcaraz lifted his game, chasing down drop volleys and slamming forehand winners down the line and across the court. Alcaraz blew three matchpoints and lost five points in a row, but that merely delayed his coronation.

Four titles from four grand slam finals at the age of 21. That’s an incredible record. Not even Djokovic, Nadal or Federer could do it so young. Djokovic was 24, Nadal 22 and Federer 23 when they reached the four-major mark.

Alcaraz is making tennis history in a hurry. He’s the new king of tennis. Long may he reign.