Carlos Alcaraz etched his name into the history books on Sunday by capturing the Australian Open title and becoming the youngest man ever to complete a career grand slam, following a thrilling victory over Novak Djokovic in the men’s final.
After dropping the opening set to a determined Djokovic, who was aiming to secure a record-breaking 25th grand slam crown, Alcaraz regrouped and stormed back to claim a 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 win, cementing his place as the world No. 1.
Beating the Spaniard was always going to be an enormous challenge for Djokovic, particularly after his exhausting five-set semifinal triumph over world No. 2 Jannik Sinner on Friday.
At 38, and with the rise of both Sinner and Alcaraz, chances are becoming increasingly limited for the Serbian star to capture the long-sought 25th major title that would move him ahead of Margaret Court and crown him the most successful player in tennis history.
Facing Alcaraz meant confronting an opponent who can retrieve almost every ball, sustain rallies for remarkable lengths of time, and unleash unexpected creativity — even against a veteran as accomplished as Djokovic.
Now just 22, Alcaraz has joined a select group of only five men in the Open Era to have claimed all four major championships: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open.
He has achieved this milestone at a significantly younger age than the members of the famed “Big Three” — Rafael Nadal completed the set at 24, Roger Federer at 27, and Djokovic at 29.
The Spaniard also became the youngest man in the Open Era to win seven grand slam titles, breaking the previous record held by Bjorn Borg.
In his post-match remarks, Alcaraz praised his support team — who had faced scrutiny after his split from longtime coach Juan Carlos Ferrero six weeks earlier — along with Djokovic and his childhood idol Nadal, who watched from the stands.
“I think (Djokovic) deserves some ovation for sure,” he said in his on court interview. “You are talking about how I’m doing the amazing things but that was you doing them and it was really inspiring.
“My team over there,” he added. “Nobody knows how hard I’ve been working to get this trophy, I just chase this so much, in preseason I was a little bit emotional.”