Novak Djokovic, Carlos Alcaraz set up dream Olympic tennis final with convincing semi-final victories
It's Nole vs. Carlitos, Chapter VII.
Tennis superstars Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz scored easy semi-final wins on Friday (2 August) at Stade Roland-Garros, setting up their seventh meeting in an inter-generational rivalry that has already produced plenty of drama.
Sunday (4 August) they'll play for the Olympic gold medal in men's singles at Paris 2024.
It's a title Djokovic has long coveted, the 37-year-old making his fifth appearance at the Games. He prevailed in a long first set vs. Italian Lorenzo Musetti Friday night, then geared into cruise control, winning 6-4 6-2.
Earlier in the day on the same Court Philippe-Chatrier stadium, Alcaraz scored a decisive 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada.
While Djokovic would like Olympic gold 16 years after his bronze at Beijing 2008, the 21-year-old Spaniard is eyeing to continue his golden summer: He claimed the French Open title inside Court Philippe-Chatrier in early June, then just a few weeks ago captured his second consecutive Wimbledon crown.
It was on Centre Court at the All-England Club that Alcaraz defeated Djokovic for a second straight year, this time over a convincing straight sets.
Djokovic beat the Beijing 2008 champion, his legendary rival, Rafael Nadal, in the second round in his march to the final four.
Meanwhile, Alcaraz played alongside Nadal in a special doubles pairing for the Games, "Nadalcaraz" winning two matches before being stopped in the quarter-finals.
Sunday the two go head-to-head once again.
"I'm very proud [and] I'm thrilled to bring a medal, secure a medal for Serbia, whatever happens on Sunday," Djokovic said after his win. "Of course I want to go a step further and try to win the gold. I'm going to do my best on Sunday, but obviously I want to celebrate something that I've never achieved before. So I'm very, very thrilled."
PARIS, FRANCE: Novak Djokovic of Team Serbia celebrates match point during the Tennis Men's Singles Semifinal match against Lorenzo Musetti of Team Italy on day seven of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 at Roland Garros on August 02, 2024 in Paris, France. (Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)
Rafael Nadal: "I will be supporting [Alcaraz] from home"
Alcaraz has now won 20 of his last 21 matches with those aforementioned championship runs at Roland-Garros and Wimbledon. He was in full flight against Auger-Aliassime, winning in just 75 minutes by hitting 12 winners, going 10 of 11 at the net and never facing a break point.
It's been a dream week for Alcaraz as he's returned to the familiar confines of his French win eight weeks ago. He has yet to drop a set, and the semis were his easiest scoreline so far with the loss of just two games.
He has been buoyed by the experience alongside Nadal, who was a childhood hero of his growing up. Nadal has remained uncertain if his is his final tournament, with the US Open - he says - in doubt, though he's still meant to play September's Laver Cup.
"We have a very good relationship; I want to keep having a very positive relationship with Carlos," Nadal explained of his partnership with Alcaraz.
"It’s just simply, we are in a completely different lifetime momentum.
"If my age was 10 years less, we're going to create a beautiful relationship on tour, of course, and we're going to share a lot of beautiful moments together, but that's not going to happen. So it's normal that we will not see each other as soon as if we keep playing the normal tour. But, of course, I will be supporting him from home, wishing him all the very best every single time."
Nadal has doubles gold in addition to his singles win in 2008: At Rio 2016 he triumphed alongside good friend Marc Lopez.
Alcaraz said he respects every opponent he faces across the net, but Djokovic will present a more experienced challenge than Musetti, who is just 22 and arriving at some of his top-level tennis.
The men's singles final is set for Sunday afternoon after the women's doubles.
In fifth Olympics, Djokovic reaches first gold-medal match
It's an emotional moment for Djokovic, who fell to the ground after his win over Musetti, clinching his first-ever place in an Olympic final. He actively fought back tears as the crowd celebrated his victory, Serbian flags unfurled.
It could have proven much more complicated, with the first set going over an hour on the clock and Musetti failing to draw even at 5-all, putting a forehand at the net right to Djokovic, who sent a terrific lob over the Italian's head.
Early in the second, Musetti had a break lead - twice. But couldn't maintain that advantage. Djokovic drew level to 2-all and then never looked back, a playbook he's used countless times in his Hall of Fame-worthy two-decade-long career.
The Olympics have had a series of slip-ups for the Serbian, who fell to Nadal in a dramatic semi-final in 2008 before losing to Andy Murray in the final four at London 2012 and Alexander Zverev at Tokyo 2020 in 2021.
All three of those men went on to win gold.
But now it's Djokovic's turn, and this comes just two months after a torn meniscus left not only his summer, but his career, in doubt during the French Open.