Carlos Alcaraz Breaks Aus Open Barrier, Reaches First Final After Epic Five-Set Battle

 

Carlos Alcaraz has finally crossed the last remaining Grand Slam hurdle in his career by reaching his maiden Australian Open final. After failing to go beyond the quarterfinals in his previous four attempts, the Spaniard will compete for the title for the first time on Sunday.

Although Alcaraz has already won the other three Grand Slams twice each, he had never even reached the semifinals in Melbourne before this year. On Friday, he had to dig deep in a marathon encounter, lasting five hours and 27 minutes, to defeat third seed Alexander Zverev of Germany 6–4, 7–6 (7–5), 6–7 (3–7), 6–7 (4–7), 7–5.

Alcaraz made his Australian Open debut in 2021, losing in the second round. He exited in the third round in 2022, did not play in 2023, and was knocked out in the quarterfinals over the last two years. This season, however, he finally managed to go all the way to the final.

It was evident from his movement that Alcaraz was struggling with an injury. After winning the first two sets, he lost the third and fourth in tie-breaks. In the deciding fifth set, Zverev was serving for the match, but Alcaraz produced a crucial break to level at 5–5. He then held his own serve to go ahead 6–5 and broke Zverev again in the twelfth game to seal the match.

A long and intense battle between the two was expected, but it stretched to five sets largely due to Alcaraz’s physical problems. While the Spaniard dominated the early stages, Zverev took control from the third set onwards and, on overall statistics, even performed better. Zverev fired 17 aces compared to Alcaraz’s 12, had a higher first-serve percentage (72% to 66%), and won more points on serve (137 to 130). Yet, it was Alcaraz’s mental strength that ultimately made the difference.

Zverev deserves credit for coming back from two sets down and pushing the match to the limit. He tested Alcaraz’s skills with every shot and refused to give away easy points. Even when Alcaraz was clearly hampered by cramps, the German kept fighting and was on the verge of victory. However, under pressure in his final two service games, Zverev committed a series of unforced errors, which proved decisive.

Just when it seemed that injury and exhaustion would overwhelm him, Alcaraz staged a remarkable comeback. Asked after the match by former player Jim Courier how he managed to turn things around, Alcaraz summed it up in one word: “belief”.

“No matter how difficult the situation became, I always believed I could do it,” he said. “That belief is what helped me win today.”

He added that even when he lost the third and fourth sets and the pain intensified, he never doubted the outcome. “I’ve been in tough situations before and I know how to come back. I know what to do when things get hard.”