Tennis Tracker: Alcaraz wins his first Wimbledon title after edging Djokovic in epic final
23:23 CET - One final match to report on from Wimbledon as Barbora Strycova (37) and Su-Wei Hsieh (37) have come out on top in the women's doubles final over Elise Mertens (27) and Storm Hunter (28) 7-5, 6-4.
20:17 CET - Two questions remain as this year's Wimbledon comes to a close, is this a changing of the guard moment and how many Grand Slam titles can Carlos Alcaraz (20) win?
20:13: CET - Alcaraz (20) lifts the Wimbledon trophy and gives it a kiss as fellow countryman Rafa Nadal has done in the past.
20:06: CET - Now time to hear from the 2023 Wimbledon Champion, Carlos Alcaraz.
Alcaraz: "You (Djokovic) inspire me a lot since I was born you were winning tournaments!"
"It's special to play in front of royalty, I am really proud you are here supporting me. It is really really special.
"I fall in love with grass right now! I have played just four tournaments on grass, so I'm really proud."
20:04: CET - Djokovic: "I won finals in the past which I should have lost so this is even stevens."
20:02 CET - First up in the post-match presentation is Djokovic as he talks about finishing runner-up.
19:54 CET - BREAKING: Carlos Alcaraz (20) wins the 2023 men's Wimbledon title after a classic final finished 1-6, 7-6 (8-6), 3-6, 6-4.
19:46 CET - After going 0-15 down, Alcaraz shows great composure to move within one service game of victory, 5-3.
19:29 CET - An inspired Alcaraz (20) breaks Djokovic's (36) serve to take a 2-1 lead and the advantage in the final set.
19:23 CET - Alcaraz (20) holds off a Djokovic (36) break point to level at 1-1 in the deciding set.
19:05 CET - Eight-time Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic (36) takes the 2023 final to a deciding fifth set against Carlos Alcaraz (20) after winning the fourth set 6-3.
18:43 CET - Djokovic (36) breaks Alcaraz (20) in the fourth set as the Serb refuses to lie down in this box office final.
18:10 CET - Alcaraz (20) does to Djokovic (36) what the Serb did to him in the first set, taking the third set 6-1 and taking control of the 2023 Wimbledon final.
18:04 CET - After an epic 26-minute game which went to deuce an astonishing 13 times, Alcaraz (20) breaks Djokovic (36) again and closes in on the third set.
17:38 CET - Djokovic (36) fails to convert break point opportunity as Alcaraz (20) remains a break up in the third set.
17:24 CET - The tide has really turned in this captivating final as Alcaraz (20) breaks Djokovic's (36) serve in the opening game of the third set.
17:10 CET - Alcaraz (20) levels the match! After a tense tiebreak which ebbed and flowed, the Spaniard went on the offensive at 7-6 and pulled off a brilliant passing shot to claim the second set.
17:00 CET - We head to a second set tie-break after Alcaraz fails to break Djokovic at 6-5.
16:49 CET - Djokovic (36) holds off Alcaraz's (20) challenge to stay in the second set after winning an incredible point to close the game out, 5-5.
16:31 CET - We remain on serve in the second set as Alcaraz (20) finds his feet in the final. Some of the points have been breathtaking in this second set.
16:12 CET - Henry Searle (17) ended Britain's 61-year wait for a boys' singles title at Wimbledon when he beat Russian fifth seed Yaroslav Demin 6-4, 6-4 in the final on Sunday.
16:05 CET - Djokovic (36) breaks straight back as Alcaraz (20) wastes a perfect opportunity to take control of the second set.
16:00 CET - Alcaraz (20) makes the perfect start to the second set breaking Djokovic (36) for the first time and taking a two-love lead. Is this the start of a resurgence? Time will tell but for the first time in the final, the Spaniard looks like he belongs on such a grand stage.
15:45 CET - The sensational Novak Djokovic (36) takes the first set 6-1 as he dominates Carlos Alcaraz (20) who simply couldn't get into the set in his first Wimbledon final.
15:35 CET - Alcaraz's (20) serve is broken for the second time as Djokovic (36) takes a commanding 4-0 lead and closes in on the first set.
15:22 CET - Djokovic (36) breaks Alcaraz's (20) serve to take an early 2-0 lead and get off to the perfect defence of his title.
15:10 CET - And play gets underway on centre court for the start of the 2023 final, with Novak Djokovic (36) to serve first.
15:00 CET - The players walk out onto court, receiving a raucous reception from the fans as the start of the Wimbledon 2023 final closes in.
14:40 CET - With the final just 20 minutes away, the anticipation is building ahead of one of the more interesting Wimbledon finals in recent history. You have the world number one and rising star of men's tennis in Alcaraz (20) taking on eight-time Wimbledon champion and world number two Djokovic (36).
Djokovic (36) might be the heavy favourite but Alcaraz (20) has surprised people time and time again in his short career. Many doubted the Spaniard against Matteo Berrettini (27) and then Medvedev (27) in the semi-final. Saying that only a big hitter had a chance against Djokovic. But it is Alcaraz and not anyone else who has a chance to etch his name into the history books.
13:02 CET - The semi-finals of last month's French Open seemed to generate slightly more excitement and anticipation compared to the championship match at Wimbledon.
This was primarily due to the guaranteed competitiveness of the Paris contest, where the underdog Novak Djokovic (36) could be relied upon to fiercely compete under any circumstances without easily surrendering.
Now, it is Carlos Alcaraz's (20) opportunity to showcase his fighting spirit as the underdog on his least preferred surface and create a truly deserving final.
The best possible outcome for any player following a highly demoralizing and bitter defeat on a grand stage is to have a swift rematch on a similar platform to seek redemption. Carlos Alcaraz has provided himself with precisely that opportunity at Wimbledon this Sunday. The defeat at the French Open must have been difficult for him to accept because it wasn't a matter of being outperformed in tennis skills, but rather being outmatched in terms of experience and physical conditioning.
In fact, Alcaraz managed to regain control of the match during the second set and carried the momentum into the third set, but unfortunately, his body failed him from that point onward.
Read the full preview here.
5:25 CET - Novak Djokovic (36) is after his 24th Grand Slam title and eighth Wimbledon, he already has the Australian Open under his belt this year and is looking to add to it as he takes on his 35th Grand Slam final. In front of him will be world number one Carlos Alcaraz (20), the young champion has already won the US Open, and has just come off the semi-finals of the French Open.
Getting knocked out by none other than Djokovic himself, they’ve each won a match against each other and will be trying to break that tie and the platform could not get any more exciting than a Wimbledon final.
