Carlos Alcaraz defeated seven-time champion Novak Djokovic to claim his first Wimbledon title on Sunday, shattering the Serb’s dream of a record-equalling 24th Grand Slam crown.
World number one Alcaraz recovered from dropping the first set and saving a set point in the second to win 1-6, 7-6 (8/6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 after four hours and 42 minutes on Centre Court.
It was a second major for the 20-year-old Spaniard following his US Open title last year as he became Wimbledon’s third youngest men’s champion.
The result will also spark feverish speculation over the start of a generational shift, with 36-year-old Djokovic carrying the torch of the ‘Big Three’ now that Roger Federer is retired and Rafael Nadal is sidelined, perhaps permanently.
Australian Open and French Open champion Djokovic had been bidding to equal Federer’s record of eight Wimbledon titles and match Margaret Court’s all-time mark of 24 Slams.
When he won his first major at the Australian Open in 2008, Alcaraz was still three months shy of his fifth birthday.
Alcaraz backed it up with a rapid-fire service game which took just two minutes in comparison and broke again against the dispirited defending champion to move two sets to one ahead.
Djokovic argued with umpire Fergus Murphy over his monitoring of the shot clock and did little to endear himself with the crowd by taking a lengthy toilet break before the fourth set.
However, the break worked wonders as the Serb broke twice in the set, levelling the final courtesy of Alcaraz’s seventh double fault of the final.
Djokovic wasted a golden chance to break for 2-0 in the decider with a wild smash and Alcaraz made him pay, breaking for 2-1.
A frustrated Djokovic collected another code violation for destroying his racquet against the net post before he slipped 3-1 down.
Alcaraz was not to be denied and he claimed a famous victory when Djokovic buried a forehand in the net.
