Carlos Alcaraz won his third grand slam title on Sunday after overcoming one of the toughest matches of his career to win the 2024 French Open title. 

Alcaraz spent over four hours to beat Alexander Zverev 6-3 2-6 5-7 6-1 6-2, in a match that many people expected would be one of the easiest in the competition. With the win, the Spaniard has now joined the league of men who have won a grand slam on hard court, grass court, and clay court and is also the youngest to do so. 

The first set went in the way of the 21-year-old and he quickly took victory. It was in the second set that things became tougher as Zverev broke his opponent, before eventually winning the set. The third set was alike, and this time, Zverev was able to capitalize on errors made by Alcaraz, although he won by a slow margin. 

The next set was when Alcaraz began to fight back, earning him a win and forcing a fifth set, which he won with less pressure than the earlier sets.

After the match, Alcaraz expressed his joy in winning an event he had been looking forward to as a kid, describing it as a “dream come true”. He also had some praises for his opponent and commented on how weather conditions could have made him lose the game from the first set. 

In a similar way, Zverev was happy for his opponent’s victory, calling him a “hall of famer” and adding that he expects Alcaraz to win at Roland Garros more than once. As for the German, his wait for a grand slam title continues as he has now lost his two appearances at the final of a grand slam event. 

Alcaraz now has one more event to win to claim a win on all court surfaces, and that is the Australian Open, which he is expected to win anytime soon as he clearly shows no sign of slowing down.