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- Carlos Alcaraz stepped up when it really mattered to win the Wimbledon final against Novak Djokovic on Sunday.
- In the decisive fifth set, Alcaraz slammed down 18 winners compared to a meagre three from Djokovic.
- Twenty-year-old Alcaraz's triumph could signal a changing of the guard in men's tennis.
Carlos Alcaraz made a massive statement when he upset seven-time champion Novak Djokovic in the Wimbledon final on Sunday.
It was the 20-year-old's second Grand Slam title after his triumph as a teenager at last year's US Open.
But it was his win against Djokovic, who was gunning for his 24th major, that perhaps signalled a changing of the guard in men's professional tennis.
The young Spaniard wore down his 36-year-old opponent over four hours and 42 minutes of unrelenting drama on Centre Court.
READ | 'Spanish bull' Alcaraz is me, Federer, Nadal rolled into one: Djokovic
But it was the manner in which Alcaraz went about his business that was the most impressive.
After a slow start, which saw him lose the first set 6-1, Alcaraz hit back in a vital second set.
It was a set he simply had to win as no man had won a Wimbledon final from two sets to love down since 1927.
Djokovic had set point at 6-5 in the tie-break but faltered - and that proved to be a trend for the remainder of the match.
Alcaraz won the important moments more often than not.
In the end, it was also Alcaraz's more attacking brand of tennis that prevailed against the resilient defence of Djokovic.
In the decisive fifth set, Alcaraz's statistics were simply staggering and proved why he was a deserved winner.
The Spaniard slammed 18 winners compared to Djokovic's meagre three. Alcaraz only had five unforced errors - a healthy number considering the amount of winners he hit. Djokovic made three unforced errors.
Alcaraz also hit three aces compared to zero from Djokovic and the Spaniard won 74% of his first serve points compared to 67% of Djokovic. On second serve, Alcaraz won 70% of his points and Djokovic only 55%.
Simply put, Alcaraz stepped up when it really mattered. He went for it and it paid off.
That says a lot about the composure of the youngster. To be able to execute in the manner he did against the game's greatest champion is nothing short of remarkable.
The overall match statistics also favour Alcaraz. He hit 66 winners compared to Djokovic's 32. Alcaraz made 45 unforced errors and Djokovic 40.
The Spaniard hit nine aces compared to Djokovic's three.
Alcaraz won 70% of first serve points won and Djokovic 62%. On second serve, Alcaraz won 50% and Djokovic 56%.
Both players were equal when coming to the net, with Alcaraz winning 28 of 46 points (61%) and Djokovic 39 of 65 (60%).
There's no doubt Alcaraz is the future of tennis. Barring injury, he could go on to have an equally distinguished career like the "Big 3" of Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.
Like Nadal, Alcaraz was 19 when he won his first Grand Slam. Djokovic, in contrast, was 20 when he won his first major at the Australian Open in 2008, while Federer was 21 when he won his first big crown at Wimbledon in 2003.
