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Carlos Alcaraz defends his crown, beats Jannik Sinner to win longest French Open men's singles final in history
Carlos Alcaraz, who was two sets down at the start, came back from behind to register an emphatic 4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 win over Jannik Sinner.
Carlos Alcaraz defended his crown at Roland Garros after beating world number 1 Jannik Sinner in the longest French Open men's singles final in history. Alcaraz, who was two sets down at the start, came back from behind to register an emphatic 4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6 win over Sinner and claimed back-to-back titles at the French Open.
The Spaniard showcased immense grit and resilience after losing the first two sets 4-6, 6-7 and then won three consecutive sets to outclass Sinner in an instant classic. Sinner loosened his grip a bit in the third and fourth sets, but he put up a solid fight in the final to take it deep. In the end, Alcaraz managed to edge past him in the tie-breaker. The all-time classic went on for 5 hours and 29 minutes - which made it the longest final in French Open history. It easily eclipsed the 1982 final in Paris when Mats Wilander triumphed in four sets over Guillermo Vilas in 4hr 42min. It was the first time that Sinner had lost a Grand Slam final.
Relentless pressure from the baseline allowed Sinner to go a break up early in the second set and the top seed began to apply the squeeze on Alcaraz, who was on the ropes trailing 1-4 on a sunbathed Court Philippe Chatrier.
An aggressive Alcaraz came out fighting and drew loud cheers when he drew level after 10 games and then forced a tiebreak but Sinner edged ahead with a blistering forehand winner and doubled his lead after the clock ticked past two hours.
Alcaraz, who had never come back from two sets down, battled hard in the hope of avoiding his first loss in a major final and pulled a set back before bravely saving three match points at 3-5 down in the fourth set, later restoring parity via the tiebreak.
Carlos Alcaraz extends his unbeaten record in Grand Slam finals
The 22-year-old Spaniard extended his flawless record in Grand Slam finals to 5-0, ending Sinner’s 20-match unbeaten streak at the majors.
With the thrilling victory, Alcaraz became the third-youngest man in history to claim five Grand Slam titles—joining legends Bjorn Borg and fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal—as he continues to lead the charge for tennis’s next generation.
Sinner fell agonisingly short of a third successive Grand Slam crown after last year's US Open title and back-to-back Australian Open triumphs.
He suffered his fifth straight loss to Alcaraz in what was their first meeting in a Grand Slam final -- and the first championship match at a major between two men born in the 2000s.
Alcaraz leads 8-5 overall having also beaten Sinner to win in Rome, where the Italian returned to competition after a three-month doping ban.
