Novak Djokovic got the better of Carlos Alcaraz in the final of the men’s singles tennis event at the Paris Olympics 2024 to bag his first-ever gold medal in his fifth Olympic outing.
The Serbian triumphed in straight sets over the Spaniard as he picked up a 7-6(3), 7-6(2) victory to bag the yellow metal in Paris.
Djokovic became the oldest man to win a gold at the quadrennial showpiece with the triumph on Sunday and joined an elite club of players to win all four majors and the Olympic gold.
Only Steffi Graf, Andre Agassi, Rafael Nadal, and Serena Williams had completed the full set of Wimbledon, French Open, US Open, Australian Open and the Olympic gold ahead of Djokovic’s triumph over the promising young Spaniard.
An emotional Djokovic celebrated by holding aloft the Serbian flag on court before clambering into the players’ box to embrace his wife and children.
“We almost played three hours, the final shot was the only moment when I was sure I could win the match,” said Djokovic, who had lost heavily to Alcaraz in the Wimbledon final last month.
“I put my body, my family on the line to win gold and finally I did it.”
Alcaraz was distraught and wept as he attempted to conduct a TV interview.
“Three hours, a big battle with tough moments,” said the 21-year-old after a final in which neither player dropped serve. “It’s very painful to lose.”
Djokovic carved out a break point in the second game of the opener and three more in the fourth, all saved by the Spaniard.
Then it was the Serb’s turn to demonstrate his famed powers of resilience, fighting off three break points in the fifth game and another five in a marathon ninth game.
In a rollercoaster duel, Alcaraz saved a set point in the 12th game but his veteran opponent dominated the tiebreak to claim the opener after a breathless 93 minutes on Court Philippe Chatrier.
There was no let-up in the second set, scintillating shot-making alongside rousing defence with Alcaraz fighting off the final’s 14th break point in the third game.
Again the set was decided by a tie-break and it was Djokovic with history on the line again sweeping through to take victory after two hours and 50 minutes.
Lorenzo Musetti defeated Felix Auger-Aliassime in three sets on Saturday to claim the bronze medal, giving Italy its first men’s tennis medal in 100 years.
(With Inputs from AFP)
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