PARIS (AP) — For all his Grand Slam titles and other titles, throughout his time at No. 1, Novak Djokovic really wanted to win an Olympic gold medal for Serbia, the last major accomplishment missing from his stellar resume.

On Sunday, at the age of 37, he finally achieved a breakthrough by beating Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(3), 7-6(2) in a thrilling and evenly contested men’s tennis singles final at the 2024 Games.

In one sense, of course, it doesn’t matter how long it takes. Djokovic is an Olympic champion now and will be forever. And in another sense, the years of waiting, the stumbling along the way, have made him appreciate this victory as much as any other — no, more so — and so when he finally knelt on the red clay of Court Philippe Chatrier, his hands shook and tears flowed.

“When I consider everything, this is probably the greatest sporting achievement of my career,” said Djokovic, who did not lose a set in Paris and became the oldest man to win the Summer Games tennis title since 1908. “This supersedes everything I dreamed of, everything I hoped to experience, everything I could feel.”

The margins were so small that it felt like any mistake could change everything. Djokovic was at his best when the stakes were high, winning both tie-breaks against Alcaraz, who beat him in the Wimbledon final three weeks ago.

“He played impressively in close moments, in difficult situations, in tiebreaks,” said Alcaraz, the 21-year-old silver medalist from Spain, who sobbed after failing to become the youngest men’s singles gold medalist. “So I saw he was hungry for the gold medal. He was going to get it.”

Djokovic has 24 Grand Slam titles on the men’s side and the record for most weeks at the top of the rankings by any man or woman. He also has an Olympic medal from 2008, but it was a bronze, and he’s made it clear that wasn’t enough. He’s continued to talk about how much of a priority gold is for him over the past week and months, and Alcaraz said he kept hearing that on Sunday.

Until Friday’s win over Italian Lorenzo Musetti in Paris to win the bronze medal, Djokovic was 0-3 in Olympic semifinals, losing each time to the eventual gold medalist: Rafael Nadal in Beijing in 2008, Andy Murray in London in 2012 and Alexander Zverev in Tokyo three years ago.

This time, Djokovic said, “I was ready.”

Djokovic, who wore a grey armband on his right knee after undergoing surgery two months ago for a torn meniscus, faced Nadal in the second round in Paris and eliminated his arch-rival in three sets.

The 2 hour and 50 minute final featured Djokovic, one of the best to ever do it. The Alcaraz was “the highest mountain to climb right now”, as Djokovic put it.

There were perfect ball striking, slick drop shots and terrific sprinting, sliding and stretching defense. No. 1 seed Djokovic saved eight break points, No. 2 Alcaraz saved six. Pressure? Huh. What pressure?

“We both played at a very high level,” Djokovic said. “We really came face to face.”

Perhaps the only shame for the fans—and for Alcaraz, of course—was that the Olympics used a best-of-three format instead of the best-of-five format of the Grand Slam tournaments. Those in the stands became part of the show, frequently creating an operatic fugue with overlapping choruses of “No-le! No-le!” or “Car-los! Car-los!” As Alcaraz attempted to mount a comeback, his supporters chanted “Si, se puede!” (essentially, “Yes, you can do it!”).

But the silence was as still as a theatre; the play was briefly postponed when the cry of a small child pierced the expectant air.

The first set alone lasted more than an hour and a half, filled with epic shots and epic plays, including 18 points spread out over a dozen mesmerizing minutes leading up to the tiebreaker, in which Djokovic took the final four points and then turned to the visiting crowd, including his tennis team, his wife and two children, with a raised fist in the air.

In the second tiebreak, Djokovic stood up and waved his arms to encourage the shouting crowd after hitting a running cross-court forehand winner to take a 10-shot lead to 3-2. Soon after, he finally won the prize he wanted, thanks to a final forehand winner.

When the Serbian national anthem ended, Djokovic reached for his gold, brought it to his lips and kissed it.

Was he worried that moment would never come?

“There are always doubts. Definitely, I had doubts,” Djokovic said. “But my belief and conviction that I can do it is stronger than my doubts. It always was. I knew it would happen. It was just a matter of when.”

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AP Olympics: https://apnews.com/hub/2024-paris-olympic-games

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