Carlos Alcaraz (Photo by Darrian Traynor/Getty Images) Melbourne: When Carlos Alcaraz fell back into Rod Laver Arena a little over three hours into the middle, he lay motionless for a moment, stunned by the moment, caught between disbelief and the sudden weight of what he had accomplished. The world number one has just stopped 24-time major champion Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 to lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup for the first time and continue his relentless pursuit of rewriting the record books. At 22 years and 272 days, the Australian Open crown made Alcaraz the youngest man in history to complete a career Grand Slam. However, the road to the title was not smooth. Alcaraz arrived in Melbourne after a turbulent period in which he faced criticism at home and across the tennis world after parting ways with long-time coach Juan Carlos Ferrer in December, a backdrop that made the scale and poise of his triumph all the more remarkable. “No one knows better than my team how hard I worked to win this trophy,” Alcaraz said of his seventh major title. “The pre-season was a bit of a rollercoaster emotionally. We did the right job, you pushed me every day to do the right things and I’m really grateful for everyone in my corner. This trophy is yours too.” About 12 minutes into the match, Alcaraz unleashed his first drop shot, a clear signal of intent. He wanted to move Djokovic to explore the older man’s legs early. Two minutes later in the fourth game, he saved the first break point he faced with another feathery drop shot. Dragged around the court like a pawn in a carefully constructed board game, Djokovic responded in the only way he knew how, with precision and patience, to go 3-1 up on his third chance. If Alcaraz arrived with a blueprint for the sport’s great longevity symbol, Djokovic leaned on positioning and control to wrap up the opening set in just 33 minutes. Rod Laver Arena was captivated and for the first time in his young career, Alcaraz, with Spanish legend Rafael Nadal cheering him on, could sense that the volume of the crowd was definitely leaning towards his opponent. As he tried to push the pace in the second set, a tactic that played into Djokovic’s hands, the Spaniard mumbled towards his box for answers. He eventually took off the gas, went back to variation and movement, and broke in the third game. As the sun set over Melbourne Park, Djokovic retreated further beyond the baseline and onto the scoreboard. The roof over the Rod Laver Arena was only partially open on the coldest day of the fortnight, with temperatures reaching a maximum of just 20 degrees. Strong winds blew between 11.2 and 20.1mph, with gusts reaching up to 29mph, which gave the competition an unpredictable edge. The 10-time Australian Open champion left the court at the end of the second set, and as the roof began to close, Alcaraz rose to his feet and protested to the umpire. He did well not to let that distract him, carrying the momentum into the third, threatening in the opening games on Djokovic’s serve before being broken in the fifth when the Serb’s cross-court forehand went wide, igniting the Spanish team. Moments later, when the top seed emerged at the top of a geometric sharp-angle exchange and the stands erupted, it was clear the world number one was in control. Djokovic called the doctor at the end of the third set and pointed to what appeared to be acid reflux. Yet when the match seemed to be slipping away, he made a last stand, saving six break points from 15-40 down in the second game with sheer determination. Cheered on by the Rod Laver Arena crowd and thousands of others who braved the bitter cold outside, the 38-year-old traded blow for blow with a younger, fresher opponent. The resistance lasted until the 12th game when Alcaraz finally wrapped it up. The key highlight of Sunday’s final was the submission. Alcaraz won 77 percent of his first serve points, while Djokovic, who saved 11 of the 16 break points he faced in the match, managed just 66 percent. Alcaraz’s conscious effort to streamline his shot allowed him to borrow elements from Djokovic’s action and work on them in the offseason. Instead of chasing raw pace, the 22-year-old made a cleaner, more repeatable move, focusing on disguise and positioning in front of direct power. The influence is evident in the way he now protects his service games under pressure, using variation and accuracy to set up his first forehand. For a player at 6-foot-2, the shortest of the modern greats — Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer are both an inch taller than Alcaraz, while Djokovic is 6-foot-2 and Jannik Sinner is significantly taller at 6-foot-3 — this development is crucial. In the final against the very model he was studying, it became a fascinating measure of how effectively the student absorbed the master’s lessons.
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