'An annihilation - Alcaraz always had the answers'

Did anyone expect that?

Carlos Alcaraz's victory over Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final may not have been a huge surprise, but the way it played out certainly was.

In the build-up, there was talk of a repeat of last year's final - an almighty tussle that went the full five sets. And when the first game of the match lasted 14 minutes, with Djokovic eventually surrendering his serve, many felt it would be more of the same.

But Alcaraz flipped the script, racing through the first two sets, taking advantage of an off-colour Djokovic and never allowing the 24-time major champion to raise his level as he won 6-2 6-2 7-6 (7-4).

"It was an annihilation. Alcaraz was phenomenal," former British number one Tim Henman said on BBC TV.

"The tone was set in the first game. Alcaraz was relentless and gave Djokovic nothing to get his teeth stuck into.

"Alcaraz always had the answers. The first set wasn't even close. When he needed it most in the tie-break, it was like Djokovic blinked."

Former Wimbledon champion Pat Cash said it was "a perfect performance", describing it as a "breathtaking type of tennis on the biggest stage there is".

At 21, Alcaraz is a four-time major champion, and has won the French Open and Wimbledon in the space of five weeks.

"Alcaraz will carry our sport a long way," said Nick Kyrgios - runner-up at Wimbledon in 2022.

"The biggest enemy he'll have is his body. How healthy can he stay?

"I think he'll have upwards of 15 Slams, for sure."

The only sign of nerves Alcaraz showed was when he dropped three championship points at 5-4 in the third set.

But an otherwise flawless performance underscored why the Spaniard became only the eighth player to win the first four Grand Slam men's singles finals of his career.

He is just the second in the Open Era, which began in 1968, to achieve the feat after Roger Federer, who won the first seven Slam finals he contested.

Alcaraz is the ninth man in the Open Era to retain his Wimbledon title and the sixth to triumph at the French Open and All England Club in the same year.

At 21 years and 70 days, he is the youngest player in the Open Era to do the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double in the same calendar year.

The Spaniard is also the third-youngest player in the Open Era to retain his Wimbledon title, following Boris Becker (18 years, 227 days) and Bjorn Borg (21 years, 26 days).

Djokovic, arguably the greatest ever when it comes to performing under pressure, was quick to praise the Spaniard's performance.

"Overall the way I felt on the court today against him, I was inferior," said Djokovic.

"That's it. He was a better player. He played every single shot better than I did. I don't think I could have done much more. He was playing with a lot of variety. He really outplayed me."

Alcaraz, for his part, remains focused on the future.

"At the end of my career, I want to sit at the same table as the big guys. That's my main goal," he said.

"That's my dream right now. It doesn't matter if I already won four Grand Slams at the age of 21.

"If I'm not keeping going, all these tournaments for me, it doesn't matter."

Djokovic has only lost three of his 10 Wimbledon finals - and two of those have been to Alcaraz.

He has won a major on all three surfaces and, perhaps most ominously for his rivals, the Slams seem to bring out his most tenacious qualities.

He has an astonishing 12-1 record in fifth sets, having not lost one since the 2022 Australian Open when he was just starting to break through, and he came back from two sets to one down at both Wimbledon and Roland Garros.

His big-hitting is suited to hard courts, he has the movement for the clay and the touch for grass-court success.

However, he has struggled with injury in recent years. The Spaniard missed the end-of-season 2022 ATP Finals because of an abdominal problem and the Australian Open a few months later with a hamstring issue.

"The one enemy in Alcaraz's career so far has been injuries," said Kyrgios.

"This is only his eighth event this year, so if he's able to get on top of that and find what works for his body, nothing is going to be able to stop him in my eyes."

With attention now turning to the Olympics, on the Paris clay where Alcaraz won his third Slam, many will be wondering who will challenge him for the title.

With Djokovic in the latter part of his career, eyes shift to younger players, with Henman citing Italy's Jannik Sinner, Denmark's Holger Rune and American Ben Shelton as having the potential to challenge Alcaraz.

"There's plenty who are going to want to stand up - Jannik Sinner is the world number one right now and they have a great rivalry ahead of them," Henman said.

"But for me Alcaraz's variety, the strings to his bow that he's able to utilise on every surface, is a pleasure to watch."

Alcaraz said: "I think it is good for tennis to have new faces winning the big things and fighting for the big tournaments.

"I think it's great for the sport and I think for the players as well."