At just 22 year old, Carlos Alcaraz completed the career Grand Slam on Sunday night in Melbourne.
Alcaraz won his first Australian Open title, overcoming Novak Djokovic 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 after three hours and two minutes. He is the youngest man to win all four majors and has seven such titles overall — also the most by any man before turning 23.
“What you have been doing, I think the best words to describe it are historic, legendary,” Djokovic told Alcaraz during the trophy ceremony. “So congratulations and I wish you the best of luck for the rest of the career.”
Djokovic was trying to cap off his illustrious career with a 25th Grand Slam victory, which would have put him alone at the top among men and women ahead of Margaret Smith Court. The Serb was bidding for his 11th Aussie Open title, and he had previously been 10-0 lifetime in Aussie Open finals.
For a moment it looked like that perfect record might continue. Building on his incredible five-set semifinal win over Jannik Sinner, Djokovic stormed out of the gates on fire and dominated the first set. However, it was a level the 38-year-old could not sustain — and Alcaraz’s form improved dramatically the rest of the way.
Alcaraz did not lose serve a single time over the final three sets. That’s why it hardly mattered that the world No. 1 was only 5-for-16 of his own break points; the few chances that he did take were more than enough. His fifth break ended the match with Djokovic serving to force a fourth-set tiebreaker.
“I think nobody (else) knows how hard I have been working to get this trophy,” Alcaraz said, addressing his team. “I chased this moment so much.”
But he didn’t have to chase it all that long. Alcaraz won the U.S. Open at 19 years old, Wimbledon at 20, the French Open at 21, and now the Australian Open 22.