Carlos Alcaraz’s epic French Open triumph over Jannik Sinner could go down as one of the greatest Grand Slam finals of all time.
World No. 2 Alcaraz successfully defended his Roland Garros crown with an extraordinary 4-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(2) triumph over world No. 1 Sinner on Sunday, the first major final between the two.
The Spaniard saved three championship points in the fourth set, becoming just the third man to win a Grand Slam final after facing match points in the Open Era.
He also became the sixth player to come from two sets down in a French Open final, while, at five hours and 29 minutes in length, it is now the second-longest Grand Slam final of the Open Era.
Many leading pundits have already hailed Alcaraz and Sinner’s final as one of the greatest major finals of all time.
It has been compared to Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal’s 2012 Australian Open final, alongside Nadal and Federer’s famed 2008 Wimbledon final, and the 1980 Wimbledon final between Bjorn Borg and John McEnroe.
After the final, Alcaraz was asked about potential comparisons to those latter two finals, which are often ranked among the greatest tennis matches of all time.
A reporter stated: “People will probably talk about this match like they talk about Borg versus McEnroe at Wimbledon in 1980 and Federer-Nadal at Wimbledon 2008.
“How does it make you feel, to have entered tennis history to this extent?
In response, the 22-year-old claimed that he did not know if his and Sinner’s final sat “at their table” among all-time great finals – and was happy to let others have the debate.
“Honestly, if people put our match in that bracket, it’s a great honour for me,” said Alcaraz.
“I don’t know if it’s on the same level as those matches because they are, you know, the history of tennis and the history of sport. So I’ll let people talk about it if, for them, it’s almost the same thing.
“But for me, looking from the outside or realising what this match represents in the history of tennis, I don’t know if our match sits at their table.
“But I’m happy to inscribe our match and our names in the history of the Grand Slam, in the history of Roland-Garros.
“Simply, the debate is up to them.”
Alcaraz is set to return to action at Queen’s next week, before he attempts to win a third straight Wimbledon title.
The Spaniard beat Novak Djokovic in the 2023 and 2024 finals, and will look to join Bjorn Borg as the just the second man to complete the ‘Channel Slam’ in back-to-back seasons.
After his heartbreaking defeat, Sinner is set to return to action at the Halle Open in Germany next week.
