Carlos Alcaraz establishes himself as the obvious successor with his second Wimbledon victory.

Men’s tennis fans have long pondered who will win the title once the Big Three of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, and Novak Djokovic eventually retire. Between them, they have amassed 66 major trophies and established legendary status, dominating both on and off the court.
It seemed implausible that anybody would be up for such a feat, especially with such enormous shoes to fill. Not yet, anyhow.

However, Carlos Alcaraz, 21, demonstrated once again that he was the right man for the job on Sunday, defeating Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, only weeks after taking home the championship at the French Open. And if the 2023 final was a classic, spanning over five hours as the two exchanged momentum and points worthy of a highlight reel, the 2024 version was a very simple affair, with Alcaraz establishing his domination from the first game and never letting up. In front of an enthusiastic Center Court audience, Alcaraz had won the fourth major championship of his career at the conclusion of the two hours and twenty-seven-minute match, 6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4).
The crowd sprang to their feet as Alcaraz celebrated winning the match on his fourth championship point after staving off Djokovic in a decisive tiebreak. It seemed to be a coronation for Alcaraz as the new king of tennis in a stadium filled with real aristocracy in the spectators.
During the press conference on Sunday, Djokovic, the 24-time major winner, who said he had no intentions to retire anytime soon, referred to Alcaraz as “the best player of the tournament without a doubt.”
After defeating Mats Wilander and Bjorn Borg, Alcaraz became the third-youngest man in Open history to win four Grand Slam singles championships. With his 4-0 record, he now trails only Roger Federer (7-0) for the greatest record for men in their first major finals. He also becomes one of only two players to win both the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season, along with Borg and Rod Laver, to complete the Big Three.
Alcaraz is currently above of Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka (both with three major singles championships), and he trails only Djokovic (24) and Nadal (22) among active male players. And for many in attendance on Sunday, the victory appeared to represent more than simply another trophy for Alcaraz.
Nick Kyrgios, the injured former world No. 13 who fell to Djokovic in the 2022 Wimbledon final, tweeted, “Love Djokovic.” “But is this maybe the first time we can say the ‘changing of the guard?!?!’”
THIS WIMBLEDON VICTORY demonstrated the progress Alcaraz has made in the last year and in his brief career.
After making it to the quarterfinals in his main draw debut at the 2021 US Open, the star from Spain was anticipated to win trophies from the moment he entered the scene. But what’s amazing is how quickly and well he accomplished it.
In the US Open of 2022, Alcaraz made his Grand Slam debut following an outstanding debut the previous year. He defeated Casper Ruud 6-4, 2-6, 7-6 (1), 6-3 in the final. It was his first time to hold the top spot in the global rankings.
The pressure that accompanies a major championship has been acknowledged by other first-time winners, and for a little while, it seemed as if Alcaraz was susceptible to the same expectations. Due to a hamstring injury, he was forced to retire from the 2023 Australian Open. Later, in a highly anticipated semifinal match versus Djokovic at the French Open, he had crippling cramps. Later, he attributed it to nerves.
Thus, a few weeks later, when Alcaraz faced Djokovic in the Wimbledon final, he was seen as the underdog going into it. It was his only lead-in event, which he had won at Queen’s Club, but Wimbledon was just his fourth match on the challenging surface. And Djokovic was, well, Djokovic, the event’s seven-time champion and the last four-time victor. There were few who believed he could be defeated at the All England Club, much less a 20-year-old with so little grass experience.
Alcaraz remained unfazed, however, even after dropping the first set 6-1. Rather, he appeared to seize the moment as he refocused. He discovered his forehand and stepped up his aggression. With each point, his confidence seemed to increase along with the enthusiastic applause from the audience. Djokovic did not vanish, but the match was no longer between a rising prodigy and a classic. Rather, the contest saw two equals vying for the same Wimbledon title. After winning the second-set tiebreak, Alcaraz prevailed 1-6, 7-6 (6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 to win the match.
Alcaraz has stood out this spring and summer when the stakes were greatest, even if Jannik Sinner, the current world No. 1 and the winner of the Australian Open, has also distanced himself from the other members of the Gen Z group in the ATP. Alcaraz advanced to the French Open final after defeating a succession of elite players, including Stefanos Tsitsipas and Sinner, the 2021 runner-up, and rallied against Alexander Zverev in five sets.
Alcaraz was just as good at Wimbledon as he was at Roland Garros, even if he was unable to retain his championship at Queen’s Club. In three of his matches, Alcaraz lost the first set, but he never gave up and managed to recover to win. He dropped the first set in a tiebreak against Daniil Medvedev in the semifinals, but he came back to win the following three sets. After the match, Medvedev was asked how Alcaraz compared to the Big Three. He said that while he had never played against Djokovic, Federer, or Nadal when they were younger, he was still aware of Alcaraz’s superiority.
Medvedev said, “I don’t think Carlo has anything [like] them.” “This game has a distinct style. Carlos stands apart from a lot of players, in my opinion, since everyone has various tastes. others people want to play defense, others like to counterattack, and some people like to be really aggressive. He is capable of anything. He is most likely the most formidable opponent I have ever faced in my career.”
Alcaraz was laser-focused from the outset against Djokovic. Alcaraz scored on his sixth break point to seize the lead early in the 13-minute game and never let it go. Alcaraz managed to win the match in a tiebreak not long after Djokovic replied in the third set and saved three title points.
He seemed to fall into a category after his triumph that he hadn’t been in before.
Laver, a four-time Wimbledon winner and former world No. 1 player, wrote after watching the match from the royal box, “Carlos Alcaraz’s triumph over a great champion like Novak Djokovic is a testament to his incredible talent, determination and composure under pressure.” “Carlos has cemented his place among the tennis greats with his brilliant performance today.”
Rennae Stubbs, an ESPN commentator and former player, also offered her opinion. “Alcaraz is a really gifted young person! I never imagined seeing a player as outstanding as Novak, Rafa, and Roger, but I have no doubt that this youngster has the potential to reach the top 20. Simply amazing!”
Alcaraz will continue to be ranked third after Sinner and Djokovic even though he presently has the two most recent major championships, but he didn’t seem to be bothered by that or any of the other records or statistics that people always bring up. Alcaraz, who will compete with Rafael Nadal in both the singles and doubles competitions at the next Olympics, said that he prefers to concentrate on the bigger picture.
Alcaraz said on Sunday night, “It’s a really great start to my career, but I have to keep going.” “I need to keep paving my own route. I want to be seated at the same table as the big boys when my career is done. That’s what I want most. That’s what I want right now.”Even if, at age 21, I had already won four Grand Slams, it makes no difference. It doesn’t matter if I can’t continue; these events are only for me. I want to keep going, honestly I do. My goal is to continue winning and finish my career with a large number of them.”

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