Aksel Kryhlmand
No man had ever saved three match points and gone on to win a Grand Slam final, until now
Defending His Roland Garros Title in Historic Fashion
Carlos Alcaraz doesn’t just win, he rewrites what’s possible. In a dramatic, five-set epic that stretched over five hours and 29 minutes, the 22-year-old Spaniard defended his Roland Garros crown by overcoming world No. 1 Jannik Sinner in one of the most unforgettable Grand Slam finals in history. The scoreline: 4-6, 6-7(4), 6-4, 7-6(3), 7-6(2).
It was the kind of match that defined eras and possibly ended debates.
Five Finals and Five Titles
With this win, Alcaraz has now captured five Grand Slam titles, and incredibly, he’s 5-0 in Slam finals. The run includes victories over elite opposition:
- US Open 2022 (vs. Ruud)
- Wimbledon 2023 (vs. Djokovic)
- Roland Garros 2024 (vs. Zverev)
- Wimbledon 2024 (vs. Djokovic)
- Roland Garros 2025 (vs. Sinner)
He joins Roger Federer as the only men in the Open Era to win their first five major finals. For comparison, Rafael Nadal lost his sixth, and Novak Djokovic lost his second.
A Final for the Ages
The 2025 French Open final didn’t just live up to expectations, it shattered them. At 5 hours and 29 minutes, it became:
- The longest Roland Garros final ever
- The second-longest Slam final in Open Era history (behind Djokovic vs. Nadal at AO 2012)
Alcaraz came back from two sets to love down, something he’d never done before in his career, and saved three match points at 0-40 while serving at 3-5 in the fourth set. No man had ever saved three match points and gone on to win a Grand Slam final, until now.
Alcaraz vs. Sinner
This final was historic for another reason, it was the first Grand Slam final between players born in the 2000s. And it was a clash of the new titans.
Sinner came into the final riding a 20-match Grand Slam win streak, a 31-set streak, and a perfect 3-0 record in major finals. Alcaraz ended all of it. Their rivalry now stands at 8-4 in Alcaraz’s favor, with five straight wins for the Spaniard.
As of June 2025, the two have combined for the last six Grand Slam titles, and all signs suggest we’re witnessing the birth of a new golden era in men’s tennis.
Historic Parallels and Records
- Alcaraz won his fifth major at 22 years, 1 month, and 3 days, the exact same age as Rafael Nadal when he won his fifth.
- He ties Nadal as the second-youngest man in history to win five majors, only Bjorn Borg did it younger.
- He has now won back-to-back titles at Roland Garros, joining Kuerten and Nadal as the only men this century to defend the crown.
With a 22-1 record on clay in 2025 (titles in Monte Carlo, Rome, and Roland Garros), Alcaraz has emphatically staked his claim as the clay king of the post-Nadal generation.
What Comes Next?
With Wimbledon around the corner, Alcaraz now turns his focus to defending his titles on grass. Having proven himself across all surfaces, hard, clay, and grass, the Spaniard is no longer the future of tennis. He’s the present, and the road to any major title now runs through him.