Carlos Alcaraz has levelled the Wimbledon final against Novak Djokovic at 1-6, 7-6(6) after clinching an intriguing 85-minute second set in a tie-break at the All England Club.

Djokovic raced ahead on Centre Court with a stunning first-set performance as Alcaraz struggled to find his feet in his maiden Wimbledon championship match. A more settled Alcaraz forged an early 2-0 lead in the second set, and although his Serbian opponent rallied to force a tie-break and later held a set point at 6/5, the World No. 1 stayed solid behind serve before powering a rasping backhand return winner on his first set point to level the match.

Should Djokovic go on to complete victory at the All England Club, he would tie former WTA star Margaret Court’s record of 24 major singles trophies and stay on course for a historic calendar-year Grand Slam after his victories earlier in the year at the Australian Open and Roland Garros. He would also leapfrog Alcaraz on Monday to reclaim No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday, with Sunday’s final clash a winner-takes-all shootout for top spot.

Alcaraz is chasing his second major title, having triumphed at the 2022 US Open. If he can snap Djokovic’s 34-match winning streak at Wimbledon and prevent the Serbian from levelling Roger Federer’s tally of Wimbledon titles, the 20-year-old would become just the fourth active male player to lift the trophy at the All England Club, after Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Andy Murray.

Home favourite Murray is among those enjoying the action Centre Court, where Hollywood stars Daniel Craig and Brad Pitt, and the Prince and Princess of Wales are also in attendance. With the players level after two hours and one minute and a series of extended rallies frequently drawing the crowd to their feet, Alcaraz and Djokovic’s third Lexus ATP Head2Head meeting appears to be living up to the Serbian’s pre-match prediction of an ‘ultimate showdown’ on Centre Court.

Set One, Djokovic 7-6(1)

The Serbian produced a masterful first-set performance on Centre Court, where his clean, deep returning piled the pressure on Alcaraz’s delivery. Djokovic converted two of his six break points to deliver an early statement as Alcaraz, whose huge groundstrokes helped him reach his maiden Wimbledon final for the loss of just two sets, was unable to penetrate his opponent’s defence with any kind of regularity.

Djokovic, who dropped serve just three times en route to the final, continued his sensational tournament on serve. He faced just one break point in the set, in the opening game, and at one point responded to Alcaraz attacking his second serve by sending his next one down at 120mph.

The depth of Djokovic’s groundstrokes also prevented Alcaraz from moving forward frequently. The 20-year-old won 28 of 36 points at the net during his stunning semi-final win against Daniil Medvedev, but he only ventured forwards four times in the opening set against Djokovic, winning the point twice.

Set Two, Alcaraz 7-6(6)

After Djokovic’s first-set whirlwind, Alcaraz required a fast response, and he engineered one by claiming his first break of serve in the match in the second game of the second set. It was just the fourth time across his Wimbledon run that Djokovic had dropped serve and, despite that setback, the Serbian remained on course to beat his record-low of six service games dropped en route to a Wimbledon title, which he set in 2015.

Novak Djokovic, Service Games Lost In Wimbledon Title Years

Just as Alcaraz appeared to settle and with a supportive Centre Court crowd urging the Spaniard to work his way back into the contest, Djokovic immediately reasserted himself in trademark fashion. He notched his third break of Alcaraz’s serve in the following game, before crucially outlasting his younger opponent in a mesmerising 29-shot rally when break point down at 1-2, 30/40.

The rest of the set passed without another break point, leaving Alcaraz trying to become the first player to defeat Djokovic in a tie-break at a major since Enzo Couacaud in the second round of January’s Australian Open. The Serbian was on the brink of his 15th consecutive tie-break triumph at the majors at 6/5 but Alcaraz held firm behind serve before powering a backhand return winner on his first set point.

Source Tennis – ATP World Tour