Carlos Alcaraz retained World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings by defeating Novak Djokovic on Sunday in an epic five-set Wimbledon 2023 final.
Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz clinched his maiden Wimbledon title with a spectacular victory over 23 Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic on Sunday in front of a packed Centre Court. The World No.1 registered a 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 win over the Serbian legend to bag his second major title, having triumphed at the US Open 2022.
By snapping Djokovic's 34-match winning streak at Wimbledon and preventing him from levelling Roger Federer's tally of Wimbledon title, the 20-year-old became just the fourth active male player to lift the trophy at the All England Club, after the Serbian, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.
The championship match was a winner-takes-all competition, with the victor taking the trophy and the World No. 1 ranking out of London. Alcaraz will start his 29th week in first place on Monday. Alcaraz, who is only 20 years old, has already occupied the top spot longer than 12 other past world champions, including Mats Wilander (20 weeks), Daniil Medvedev (16), Andy Roddick (13), Boris Becker (12), and his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero (8).
Djokovic is 880 points behind Alcaraz in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. The ATP Year-End No. 1 presented by Pepperstone will come down to a huge battle because no one else is within 2,000 points of the top-ranked pair.
Alcaraz was the youngest player to receive the year-end No. 1 honour last year. With seven year-end No. 1 finishes, Djokovic holds the record. His most recent accomplishment was in 2021.
Home favourite Murray was among those who enjoyed the action in Centre Court, where Hollywood stars Daniel Craig and Brad Pitt, and the Prince and Princess of Wales were also in attendance.
Here's how the epic Alcaraz vs Djokovic showdown transpired:
Set One, Djokovic 6-1
On Centre Court, Djokovic delivered a magnificent first-set performance, piling pressure on Alcaraz's play with his crisp, deep returns. Djokovic won two of his six break points to make a strong statement early in the third Lexus ATP Head2Head match between the two players. Alcaraz, whose powerful groundstrokes enabled him advance to his first Wimbledon final with just two sets lost, was unable to consistently break through his opponent's resistance.
Djokovic continued his incredible tournament on serve, having dropped service just three times en route to the final. In the first game of the set, he only had one break point, and he once sent his second serve down at 120 mph in response to Alcaraz attacking his second serve.
Alcaraz was also unable to get forward frequently due to Djokovic's deep groundstrokes. The 20-year-old only moved forward four times in the first set against Djokovic, winning the point twice, compared to his astonishing semifinal victory over Daniil Medvedev, where he claimed 28 of 36 games at the net.
Set Two, Alcaraz 7-6(6)
Alcaraz needed to respond quickly after Djokovic's first-set whirlwind, and he did so by earning his first serve break of the match in the second game of the second set. Throughout his Wimbledon run, Djokovic had only lost serve four times. Despite this setback, the Serbian was still on track to surpass his previous record low of six service games lost on route to a Wimbledon championship, which he set in 2015.
Set Three, Alcaraz 6-1
Alcaraz proceeded to display his extensive shotmaking repertoire in the third set, buoyed by his victory in the tie-break. He kept the pressure on Djokovic, who made 18 unforced errors in an atypical third set performance, with to his forehand power and some incredible deft touches.
When one of the games from this year's tournament, which featured 13 deuces and lasted 27 breath-taking minutes on Centre Court, Alcaraz had taken a 3-1 lead after one break. Before Alcaraz converted his seventh break point to take a 4-1 lead and seize total command of the set, the Spaniard saved eight game points and six break points for Djokovic.
Alcaraz had a much easier time winning the last eight points of the set to move within one of becoming just the sixth player in the Open Era to win three major championships before turning 21. A sign of how focused the 20-year-old was on return was his three breaks of Djokovic's service in the third set, which were equal to the number of games the Serbian had lost throughout his six prior matches at SW19 this year.
Set Four, Djokovic 6-3
Djokovic was determined to win a record-breaking 24th major, and the Serbian upped his game once more in the fourth set of what was turning out to be an all-time great final on Centre Court. After holding in the second game after recovering from 15/40, he reverted to his rock-solid play from the first set, broke Alcaraz twice to regain the initiative and set up a one-set shootout for the championship. After losing his serve three times in the previous set, Djokovic's service game improved, which allowed him to reenter the game. The Serbian won the set despite only hitting nine wins to Alcaraz's fourteen, saving both break points he was presented with.
Set Five, Alcaraz 6-4
With 2 sets each, it all boiled down to Djokovic's experience versus Alcaraz's power and stamina. And it was eventually the Spaniard's powerful ground play and a few smart shots that sealed the historic win at SW19. With the Wimbledon 2023 crown, Alcaraz also retains his World No.1 ranking.
