“I’m going to fight until the last shot,” Novak Djokovic vowed, but his quest for a historic 25th Grand Slam was ultimately shattered by Carlos Alcaraz, who overcame a rocky start to dethrone the reigning champion at the Rod Laver Arena.

The Spaniard became the youngest man ever to achieve the feat. But the match wasn’t very easy for him. The first set didn’t go quite well, with Alcaraz suffering a 2-6 defeat. But the momentum of the match completely took a turn in the second set.

Indeed, Alcaraz surged ahead with a comeback performance and won the second set 6-2. He then continued with the flow in the third set by securing it 6-3. Now, it all came down to the fourth set, where it was either ride or die for Djokovic. And the Serb fought back hard.

It was a complete back-and-forth between the two tennis stars in the fourth set. Indeed, Djokovic almost forced it to a tiebreak. But the 38-year-old did whatever he could on the blue hard court of the Australian Open against the Spaniard; his tricks fell apart.

The match was intense. Despite Djokovic’s first-set victory, Alcaraz came back in the second set and didn’t hold back. The Spaniard converted 5 of his 16 break points, while the Serb managed only 2 from 6 attempts. The 22-year-old handled the pressure well, winning 77% of points on his first serve compared to Djokovic’s 67%.

“Believing. Believing, all the time,” Alcaraz said following his semifinal match against Alexander Zverev, where the injury-concerned 22-year-old defeated the German 6-4, 7-6 (5), 6-7 (3), 6-7 (4), 7-5. Just two days later, he’s the one to lift the Norman Brookes Challenge Cup. He reached all four Grand Slams in his career, and now, Alcaraz has all four of the most prestigious titles to his prolific tennis resume. The path, however, wasn’t easy.

Carlos Alcaraz’s semifinal moment raised a lot of concerns

Against Alexander Zverev in the semifinal of the Australian Open, Carlos Alcaraz seemed to struggle around the third set. That day, Melbourne’s weather reports showcased a temperature of 29.8°C (85.6°F).

The tough conditions resulted in the Spaniard feeling discomfort and eventually throwing up on a towel. Later on, the situation at the Rod Laver Arena got more intense as Alcaraz suffered through a series of cramps around his upper right leg and groin.

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However, the 22-year-old channeled the struggles as motivation and kept on fighting on the court. While the German made a powerful comeback and pushed the match to the final fifth set, Alcaraz held his ground, winning the set to secure the match.

So, with this triumph at the Rod Laver Arena, Carlos Alcaraz has tied his head-to-head against Novak Djokovic. He also ended the 38-year-old’s winning streak of ten Australian Open finals. At just 22 years old, the Spaniard has won all four Grand Slams in his career, and there’s surely more to come!