Sinner: It Didn’t Feel Real, Carlos Alcaraz’s French Open Final Comeback Seen Through the Eyes of Someone Who Was There
Jannik Sinner: It was not until what appeared to be the dying moments of the French Open final between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz that I realised it could be worth taking a photo of such a monumental occasion. This was, after all, the first grand slam final between the two players who seemed set to lead men’s tennis for many years to come
For three hours and 43 minutes Sinner had dominated Alcaraz and he earned three championship points while leading 5-3 in set four. Just before the Italian’s second championship point, I thrust up my phone and took a quick photo before my hand returned to my laptop, ready to file immediately an article that hailed his third consecutive major title and first triumph in Paris.
Instead, it would take another hour and 46 minutes for a winner to be decided on Court Philippe-Chatrier in June. What unfolded was one of the greatest comebacks and matches as Alcaraz returned from the abyss to produce an astounding 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2) victory.
Even now, six months removed from that day, it is difficult to fully comprehend those events in Paris. For hours Alcaraz had been outhit and outplayed by his biggest rival and the then world No 1 in a major final. His dire unforced errors to fall 0-40 down at 3-5 in set four seemed to seal his fate. No one in the stadium believed a comeback was possible.
No one except Alcaraz. First he dragged himself back to deuce, completely locking down his game, then he soared. By the time he closed out his service game for 4-5 with an outrageous running forehand winner, the energy inside the stadium had shifted and the crowd met the moment spectacularly.
The stadium shook as most of the 15,000 present punctuated every successful point from Alcaraz with roars of encouragement and delight, to which the Spaniard responded by cupping his ears, pumping his fists and doing everything in his power to take advantage of their encouragement.
Once the momentum had been wrestled back, it seemed as if he would not let go. Alcaraz methodically worked his way through the fourth set, then broke serve at the beginning of the fifth and maintained his advantage until he led 5-3. Had he calmly closed out the match at his first opportunity, this would still have been a classic.
The final 30 minutes, however, are what truly established this contest as one of the all-time greats. Sinner, having spent the fifth set hobbling around the court, his energy destroyed, suddenly found a second, third and fourth wind all at once.
He retrieved the break and the level of play ascended into the stratosphere as, driven by desperation and adrenaline after five hours of battle, both players swung with total freedom.
Despite all that had already unfolded, the most memorable moment came in the form of the defensive slice Alcaraz struck deep in the fifth set as Sinner hunted his fourth championship point at 6-5, 30-30. No other player would have even put a racket on the ball, yet Alcaraz somehow turned that critical point around in one stroke.
He ended lasering winners at will from every part of the court as he closed out his fifth grand slam title in a match tie-break to seal his biggest triumph.
