Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after defeating Russia’s Daniil Medvedev during the semifinals of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth)
LONDON — Carlos Alcaraz is just a few months shy of his 21st birthday, but Grand Slam success is something he’s already experienced.
Alcaraz moved one step closer to a second consecutive Wimbledon title and a fourth major championship overall, overcoming a shaky start to beat Daniil Medvedev 6-7 (1), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in the semifinals on Centre Court on Friday.
“I feel like I’m not a rookie anymore. I know how I feel before a final. I’ve been in this situation before,” Alcaraz said. “I’m going to do what worked last year and try to improve on it.”
Read: Carlos Alcaraz and Djokovic approach big Wimbledon final
After a mediocre opening set, Alcaraz once again transformed into an energetic, aggressive and crowd-pleasing player who had already become the first teenager to reach No. 1 in the ATP rankings and the youngest player to win major trophies on three surfaces – grass, clay and hard courts.
The Spaniard is now one win away from matching Boris Becker and Bjorn Borg as the only men to win multiple times at the All England Club before turning 22 in the Open Era, which began in 1968.
Alcaraz also won the 2022 U.S. Open and last month’s French Open.
He is 3-0 in major finals and will face one of 24-time major champions Novak Djokovic and Lorenzo Musetti on Sunday. The two were scheduled to meet in the second semifinal, Djokovic’s 49th appearance at this stage of a Grand Slam tournament and Musetti’s first.
Read: Carlos Alcaraz, a rare talent, on his way to 30 Grand Slams
A year ago at Wimbledon, Alcaraz beat 2021 U.S. Open champion Medvedev in straight sets in the semifinals before beating Djokovic in five sets in the final.
On an overcast afternoon, with the retractable roof over the main stadium open in the absence of any rain that had fallen over the first week and a half of the tournament, the third-seeded Alcaraz fought an up-and-down battle against fifth-seeded Medvedev, the 28-year-old Russian seeking his seventh career Grand Slam final.
“I was really nervous coming into the match,” Alcaraz said. “He was dominating the match and playing great tennis. … It was difficult for me.”
Medvedev did jump out to a 5-2 lead early on, but his play and temperament got him into trouble after that.
Read: Carlos Alcaraz says chasing Nadal and Djokovic records is ‘impossible’
Alcaraz broke and went up 5-4 with a drop shot, but chair umpire Eva Asderaki ruled it bounced twice before Medvedev’s racket hit the ball — a correct call, according to television replays. Medvedev appeared to swear afterwards, and Asderaki got off her seat during the ensuing exchange to discuss it with tournament umpire Dennis Parnell, who issued a warning to Medvedev for unsportsmanlike conduct.
He quickly recovered and played near-perfect in the tiebreaker of that set.
Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz, left, shakes hands with Russia’s Daniil Medvedev after winning during the semifinals of the Wimbledon tennis championships in London, Friday, July 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Mossaab Elshamy)
Then it was Alcaraz’s turn to get things going in the right direction, and it didn’t take long.
Three forehand errors from Medvedev led to a break for Alcaraz, who then led 2-1 in the third set with a backhand winner, capping off the longest point of the match, 27 strokes. The fans rose to their feet in roars. Alcaraz put his index fingers to his ears, and the commotion grew louder.
He got the final break he needed to take a 4-3 lead in the fourth set when Medvedev hit a backhand long, sat in a chair on the sideline, made eye contact with two coaches in the stands and began muttering and gesticulating.
The title defense continues 💪
Carlos Alcaraz beats Daniil Medvedev 6-7 (1), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4#Wimbledon pic.twitter.com/gPS9G6sDaa
— Wimbledon (@Wimbledon) July 12, 2024
Alcaraz can do that to his opponents.
The crowd gasped audibly when Alcaraz let out a two-syllable groan — “Oooh!” — after every powerful forehand, whether or not the point lasted, which it often did not: 24 of Alcaraz’s racquet were his.
Needless to say, that’s not the kid’s only skill. Serve-and-volley or not, he played great at the net, winning 38 of 53 points moving forward, including three with drop shots in the opening set alone.
He’s dangerous when playing at his best offensively, but he’s also phenomenal defensively.
At times, it felt like the game would never end until he made that move. And if that’s what it looked like from the stands, imagine how frustrating that must have been for his opponent. At one point, Alcaraz sprinted to reach a ball that was clearly out of his reach, then slipped, leaving a few feet of skid marks on the turf. He unleashed a lob that deflected over Medvedev’s head in response.
Still, Alcaraz was determined to deny Medvedev the kind of prolonged baseline points he enjoys: Only 38 of his 244 points in the semifinals lasted more than nine shots.
“I tried not to play long rallies. I tried to hit slices, drop shots. I tried to get to the net as much as possible,” Alcaraz said. “I tried not to get into his game.”
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Sunday’s sports schedule also includes the Wimbledon men’s final, as well as the men’s European football championship final in Germany, with Spain facing England.
“It’s going to be a really good day for the Spanish people,” Alcaraz alluded to in his on-court interview, drawing boos from the home crowd. Alcaraz smiled and added: “I never said Spain would win, I just said it was going to be a really fun day.”
