Brilliant Djokovic edges Alcaraz for first Olympic gold

Serbia’s Novak Djokovic produced one of his best ever performances as he beat Carlos Alcaraz 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) to win Olympic gold at Roland-Garros as the Serbian clinched the only major title to elude him.

The 37-year-old turned the tables from Wimbledon, where he was beaten in straight sets by Alcaraz, as she played two incredible sets and two even better tiebreaks to seal one of the biggest, most emotional victories of his career after two hours, 51 minutes of unbelievable tennis.

After two sets with no breaks, Djokovic thumped one final forehand winner to clinch victory, turning toward his team and roaring, before putting his hands over his head. After shaking hands with a valiant Alcaraz, the Roland-Garros and Wimbledon winner this year, Djokovic fell to his knees, head in hands, the emotions beginning to flow.

He is just the fifth player in history, after Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams, to have won all four slams and Olympic gold in their career. After three losses in semi-finals at Olympic Games, he remains at the very top of the sport, even at 37.

“I don’t know what to say,” Djokovic said. “I put my heart, my soul, my body, my family, everything on the line to win Olympic gold, at 37, and I finally did it.

“I think, after losing in the semi-finals three times, when I played (Lorenzo) Musetti, I was thinking about that…today I was not as nervous, perhaps because I had already won a medal.”

Djokovic served brilliantly throughout and when he faced danger, as he did in the first set when he had eight break points against him, he held firm, always coming up with something outstanding. And when he had the chances in the tiebreaks, he took them.

A tearful Alcaraz admitted it had been an incredibly tough loss. “Tough moments for me,” Alcaraz told Eurosport. “In the tiebreak I couldn’t get my level up. It’s a very painful loss today.”

Djokovic snatches first set of insane quality

When the pair met at Wimbledon, Alcaraz was firmly in control from the end of the first game – an epic in itself – while Djokovic admitted afterwards that his movement had not been where he wanted it, hardly surprising given the short time since his knee surgery, during the second week of the French Open.

On Sunday, Djokovic was moving much more freely from the start and Alcaraz was the one under pressure, forced to save a break point in his opening service game, which he did brilliantly, a perfect forehand drop shot doing the business.

Alcaraz was standing miles back on return but varying his angle, offering something different. Djokovic held from 0-30 to lead 2-1 and then had Alcaraz at 0-40 in the next game, thanks in part to one forehand return off the scale. But the Spaniard shut the door with good serving, big forehands and incredible movement.

At 2-2, Djokovic saved three break points with fine serving and then, at 4-4, the two men played out an incredible game in which Alcaraz had five chances to break but was blocked by the tenacity of the Serbian. Alcaraz’s movement and retrieval skills were off the charts – even having Djokovic laughing at times – but the 37-year-old came up with a first serve on each of the break points to somehow hold and move ahead again at 5-4.

A smart drop shot from Djokovic had him two points from the set at 30-30 but Alcaraz held. Djokovic held to 30-30 to put the pressure on Alcaraz again. The world No 3 was again in trouble at 30-30 and he netted a forehand volley, off-balance, to give Djokovic set point but a body serve got a short reply and he punished Djokovic with a big forehand, going on to force a tiebreak.

In the tiebreak, it was Alcaraz who blinked first, a flashing Djokovic return earning the mini-break for 4-3. Two good serves from Djokovic set up three more set points and he only needed one, a stretching forehand volley doing the job and sealing the set after 93 gruelling minutes.

Djokovic holds nerve in second tiebreak

Djokovic took a bathroom break before the start of the second set, while Alcaraz sat on his chair, looking for support from his team, which included Juan Carlos Ferrero, who cut short his holiday to be there for the gold medal match.

Alcaraz was pegged back from 40-0 to deuce in the first game but held and then, for the first time, moved his return position further forward, looking to cut out the wide serve that did so much damage in the first set. It didn’t work, instantly at least, as Djokovic held to love. Two games later, he saved a break point to nudge ahead again at 2-1.

While Djokovic was cruising through his service games, Alcaraz was having to dig deep, running down a drop shot and playing a brilliant flick forehand to get out of a 15-30 situation at 2-2. Alcaraz wn the first point of the next game with more stunning pace and athleticism but Djokovic held to level again at 3-3.

Djokovic missed a simple backhand volley that would have given him 0-30 in the seventh game and Alcaraz held on to keep his nose in front. Djokovic continued to hold firm, though, wrong-footing Alcaraz on occasions, with the Spaniard getting uncharacteristically frustrated.

The standard of play continued to amaze, Alcaraz drop shotting and lob volleying Djokovic on the opening point of the ninth game and after being pulled back from 40-0 to deuce another ridiculous point when Alcaraz’s way as he moved ahead again.

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