Novak Djokovic defeats Carlos Alcaraz for first Olympic gold medal
Even the characteristically tough Novak Djokovic couldn’t help but shed a tear at the end of the men’s singles final.
Even the characteristically tough Novak Djokovic couldn’t help but shed a tear at the end of the men’s singles final.
The Serbian tennis legend had won all four Grand Slam titles and practically every honor there is in the sport, but the Olympic gold medal was escaping him. He had tried five times to win the gold, failing each time.
That finally changed Sunday.
At the Roland-Garros stadium where he had injured his knee only months earlier, and across the net from the face of tennis’s new guard — 21-year-old Carlos Alcaraz — who had defeated him at Wimbledon this summer, the 37-year-old veteran finally struck gold.
Alcaraz did not make it easy for Djokovic, however. The two sets played had to go into a tiebreaker, which was neck and neck the entire way. During the first set, there were 13 unsuccessful break points. The match lasted nearly three hours, an eternity for earning the best two sets out of three.
Rating: 5