Alcaraz stuns Sinner in all-time great French Open final
PARIS: Carlos Alcaraz saved three championship points as he produced an astonishing fightback from two sets down to beat Jannik Sinner in a French Open final for the ages on Sunday.
Reigning champion Alcaraz rallied from the brink of defeat to overcome world number one Sinner 4-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (10/2) after five hours and 29 minutes to clinch his fifth Grand Slam title.
The 22-year-old Spaniard is now unbeaten in five Grand Slam finals after snapping Sinner's 20-match winning run at the majors.
"This was the most exciting match that I've played so far without a doubt," said Alcaraz. "I think the match had everything."
Alcaraz pulled off his first ever comeback from two sets down in the longest Roland Garros final in history, recovering from 5-3 down in the fourth set when Sinner had three match points.
"Today was all about believing in myself. Never doubted myself today and I tried to go for it," he said.
"Real champions are made in those situations."
Alcaraz is the first man to win a Grand Slam title after saving match point since Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon final. The only other man to do it in the Open era was Gaston Gaudio at Roland Garros in 2004.
Sinner fell agonisingly short of a third successive Grand Slam crown after last year's US Open title and back-to-back Australian Open triumphs.
"It's easier to play than talking now," said a devastated Sinner. "I won't sleep very well tonight but it's OK.
"We try to delete it somehow and take the positive and keep going. There are no other ways," he added.
"It hurts, but you cannot keep crying."
Sinner suffered his fifth straight loss to Alcaraz in what was their first meeting in a Grand Slam final – and the first championship match at a major between two men born in the 2000s.
Alcaraz leads 8-4 overall having also beaten Sinner in the final in Rome, where the Italian returned to competition in May after a three-month doping ban.
Alcaraz put the pressure on Sinner by carving out three break points to start Saturday's final, but the Italian resisted and soon had a chance of his own.
He couldn't take advantage and found himself having to fend off two more break points at 1-1, producing clutch serves to grind out another tough hold.
Alcaraz's persistence paid off in the fifth game when he broke to nudge 3-2 ahead, only for the Spaniard to immediately hand the lead back.
The unshakeable Sinner threatened to break again at 4-3, with a brief lapse from Alcaraz eventually enabling Sinner to snatch the first set.
Sinner hit the accelerator to start the second set, surging 3-0 in front. After facing seven break points in the opener, he tightened up considerably on serve.
But Alcaraz brought up his first break point of the second set with Sinner serving for a two-set lead, duly pouncing on the opportunity.
With the swagger back in his step at a crucial juncture, Alcaraz sought to bring the crowd into the contest but Sinner remained unflustered in the tie-break.
The first five points went with serve before Sinner whipped a forehand down the line and Alcaraz then steered a drop-shot wide.
A tame return into the net gave Sinner four set points. Alcaraz saved two before Sinner unleashed a blistering cross-court forehand to move to within a set of the trophy.
It all looked to be going his way when he broke Alcaraz to begin the third set, but the Spaniard refused to surrender his title quietly and rattled off four games on the bounce to lead 4-1.
Alcaraz lost serve at 5-3 but promptly broke to love to force a fourth set, lapping up the roars of the Court Philippe Chatrier crowd.
That ended Sinner's run of 31 consecutive sets won at Grand Slams.
Alcaraz saved a break point in the third game amid a series of holds as Sinner doubled down. The Italian appeared to be closing in on victory when he broke at 3-3 to approach the finish line.
But Alcaraz had other ideas as he staved off three championship points at 3-5 and then broke Sinner when he tried to seal the title on his serve.
Successive aces spurred a reinvigorated Alcaraz on in the tie-break and into a decisive fifth set.
A despairing Sinner lost his serve right away and his gloom deepened as Alcaraz saved two break points to pull 3-1 ahead, but incredibly there was another twist.
Alcaraz this time faltered with the title within his grasp as Sinner broke while trailing 5-3 to spark a three-game burst that left the Spaniard needing to hold serve to prolong the final.
He kept his nerve to set up a 10-point tie-break, which Alcaraz ran away with as the outrageous shotmaking continued until the very end when he took his first championship point with a sizzling forehand.--AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New Straits Times
2 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Alcaraz puts French Open miracle down to 'real champions' mindset
PARIS: Carlos Alcaraz said "real champions" are made in tough situations after the Spaniard saved three championship points and fought from two sets down to beat Jannik Sinner in the French Open final on Sunday. Reigning champion Alcaraz looked set to relinquish his Roland Garros title when he fell 5-3 behind in the fourth set, but the 22-year-old instead pulled off one of the greatest escape acts in Grand Slam history. Alcaraz withstood three match points from 0-40 on his serve to outlast world number one Sinner in a thriller, winning 4-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (10/2) after five hours and 29 minutes. "When the situations are against you, you have to fight, keep fighting," said Alcaraz, who had never before won a match from a two-set deficit. "I mean, it is a Grand Slam final. It's no time to be tired. It's no time to give up. It's time to keep fighting, trying to find your moment, your good place again, and just go for it. "I think the real champions are made in those situations when you deal with that pressure. I mean, that's what the real champions have done in their whole careers." Alcaraz won his fifth Grand Slam in as many finals after becoming just the third man to win a major after saving match point. Novak Djokovic was the last to do so when he beat Roger Federer at Wimbledon in 2019. "The match is not finished until he wins the last point," said Alcaraz. "It's just one point away from losing the match, yeah. But a lot of times people came back from match point down in final of a Grand Slam or even in other matches. "So I just wanted to be one of those players who saved match point in the Grand Slam final and ended up winning. "I just believe all the time. I have never doubt about myself, even though in those match points down. I thought just one point at a time." Alcaraz recorded his fifth consecutive win over Sinner and leads the head-to-head 8-4, but this was the biggest showdown in a burgeoning rivalry between the two brightest talents of a new generation. "This is the first match in a Grand Slam final. Hopefully not the last time," said Alcaraz. "Because I mean, as I said many times, every time that we face against each other, we raise our level to the top." Sinner was attempting to capture his third successive Grand Slam after his US Open title last year and a successful defence of his Australian Open crown in January. His 20-match winning streak at majors came to an end as did his hopes of becoming Italy's first French Open men's champion since Adriano Panatta in 1976. Sinner is a staggering 91-8 since the beginning of last year, but five of those defeats have been inflicted by Alcaraz. "I'm sure he's going to learn from this match, and he's going to come back stronger the next time we are going to face against each other," said Alcaraz. "I'm pretty sure he's going to do his homework.
New Straits Times
5 hours ago
- New Straits Times
Destiny child Alcaraz treasures Nadal heritage
PARIS: Carlos Alcaraz called it destiny as he completed a thrilling comeback to capture his fifth Grand Slam title at the French Open on Sunday, drawing level with his childhood idol Rafael Nadal's tally at the same age. The 22-year-old Spaniard, long dubbed the heir to Nadal's claycourt throne, fought back from two sets down for the first time in his career to lift the trophy in a match against world number one Jannik Sinner that he said had everything. "The coincidence of winning my fifth Grand Slam at the same age as Rafa Nadal, I'm going to say that's destiny," Alcaraz said of equalling Nadal's tally of five major titles at the same stage of their careers. Nadal was one day younger when he beat Roger Federer in another final for the ages at Wimbledon in 2008 for his fifth Grand Slam title. "It is a stat that I'm going to keep for me forever, winning the fifth Grand Slam at the same time as Rafa, my idol, my inspiration. It's a huge honour," said Alcaraz, who beat Italy's Sinner in the longest French Open final in the professional era. In a final packed with momentum swings, blistering winners, and jaw-dropping rallies, Alcaraz credited the Paris crowd for keeping him alive as he won 4-6 6-7(4) 6-4 7-6(3) 7-6(10-2). "Without them, it would have been impossible to come back," he said. "At the start of the third set, everything was going his way. I had to delete those thoughts from my mind and fight." Alcaraz saved three match points but the moment he singled out from the match was when he was 6-5 down in the decider and struggling, turning the game in his favour to force a super tiebreak. "The match points were not great points. I saved match points, it's great but the points were not good," he said. "At 6-5 in the fifth at 15-30 or 30-all, advantage for me, 40-all. Those points I remember pretty clear, and honestly I still don't know how I did it. "I mean, it was balls on the line, slicing the line. He was dominating that game. Honestly I still don't know how I saved that game." The win not only cements Alcaraz's status among the sport's elite but also reignites talk of a new generation of rivalries with Sinner having won three Grand Slam titles. "It's not going to be a turning point. I'm sure he's going to learn from this match, and he's going to come back stronger the next time we are going to face against each other," Alcaraz said of the 23-year-old Italian. "I'm pretty sure he's going to do his homework. I'm pretty sure I'm going to try to learn from this match as well how I can be better, how I can, you know, tactically make damage in his game. "I'm not going to beat him forever. That's obvious. So I have to keep learning from the matches I played against him, and hopefully play more Grand Slam finals." Still, with a trophy in hand and history in his pocket, Alcaraz was already looking ahead. "Every match that I'm playing against him is important honestly. This is the first match in a Grand Slam final. Hopefully not the last time," he said.
Malay Mail
7 hours ago
- Malay Mail
Alcaraz lifts fifth Grand Slam after stunning comeback over Sinner in Roland Garros thriller
PARIS, June 9 — Carlos Alcaraz saved three championship points as he produced an astonishing fightback from two sets down to beat Jannik Sinner in a French Open final for the ages yesterday. Reigning champion Alcaraz rallied from the brink of defeat to overcome world number one Sinner 4-6, 6-7 (4/7), 6-4, 7-6 (7/3), 7-6 (10/2) after five hours and 29 minutes to clinch his fifth Grand Slam title. The 22-year-old Spaniard is now unbeaten in five Grand Slam finals after snapping Sinner's 20-match winning run at the majors. 'This was the most exciting match that I've played so far without a doubt,' said Alcaraz. 'I think the match had everything.' Alcaraz pulled off his first ever comeback from two sets down in the longest Roland Garros final in history, recovering from 5-3 down in the fourth set when Sinner had three match points. 'Today was all about believing in myself. Never doubted myself today and I tried to go for it,' he said. 'Real champions are made in those situations.' Alcaraz is the first man to win a Grand Slam title after saving match point since Novak Djokovic beat Roger Federer in the 2019 Wimbledon final. The only other man to do it in the Open era was Gaston Gaudio at Roland Garros in 2004. Sinner fell agonisingly short of a third successive Grand Slam crown after last year's US Open title and back-to-back Australian Open triumphs. 'It's easier to play than talking now,' said a devastated Sinner. 'I won't sleep very well tonight but it's OK. 'We try to delete it somehow and take the positive and keep going. There are no other ways,' he added. 'It hurts, but you cannot keep crying.' Sinner suffered his fifth straight loss to Alcaraz in what was their first meeting in a Grand Slam final — and the first championship match at a major between two men born in the 2000s. Alcaraz leads 8-4 overall having also beaten Sinner in the final in Rome, where the Italian returned to competition in May after a three-month doping ban. 'Sinner floored by Alcaraz comeback' Alcaraz put the pressure on Sinner by carving out three break points to start Saturday's final, but the Italian resisted and soon had a chance of his own. He couldn't take advantage and found himself having to fend off two more break points at 1-1, producing clutch serves to grind out another tough hold. Alcaraz's persistence paid off in the fifth game when he broke to nudge 3-2 ahead, only for the Spaniard to immediately hand the lead back. The unshakeable Sinner threatened to break again at 4-3, with a brief lapse from Alcaraz eventually enabling Sinner to snatch the first set. Sinner hit the accelerator to start the second set, surging 3-0 in front. After facing seven break points in the opener, he tightened up considerably on serve. But Alcaraz brought up his first break point of the second set with Sinner serving for a two-set lead, duly pouncing on the opportunity. With the swagger back in his step at a crucial juncture, Alcaraz sought to bring the crowd into the contest but Sinner remained unflustered in the tie-break. The first five points went with serve before Sinner whipped a forehand down the line and Alcaraz then steered a drop-shot wide. A tame return into the net gave Sinner four set points. Alcaraz saved two before Sinner unleashed a blistering cross-court forehand to move to within a set of the trophy. It all looked to be going his way when he broke Alcaraz to begin the third set, but the Spaniard refused to surrender his title quietly and rattled off four games on the bounce to lead 4-1. Alcaraz lost serve at 5-3 but promptly broke to love to force a fourth set, lapping up the roars of the Court Philippe Chatrier crowd. That ended Sinner's run of 31 consecutive sets won at Grand Slams. Alcaraz saved a break point in the third game amid a series of holds as Sinner doubled down. The Italian appeared to be closing in on victory when he broke at 3-3 to approach the finish line. But Alcaraz had other ideas as he staved off three championship points at 3-5 and then broke Sinner when he tried to seal the title on his serve. Successive aces spurred a reinvigorated Alcaraz on in the tie-break and into a decisive fifth set. A despairing Sinner lost his serve right away and his gloom deepened as Alcaraz saved two break points to pull 3-1 ahead, but incredibly there was another twist. Alcaraz this time faltered with the title within his grasp as Sinner broke while trailing 5-3 to spark a three-game burst that left the Spaniard needing to hold serve to prolong the final. He kept his nerve to set up a 10-point tie-break, which Alcaraz ran away with as the outrageous shotmaking continued until the very end when he took his first championship point with a sizzling forehand. — AFP
