Carlos Alcaraz, crowned at Roland-Garros after an epic final, follows in Rafael Nadal's footsteps

In the front row, even Spike Lee couldn't believe it. The American director knows a thing or two about screenplays. But he would have had to be very inventive to write the one that unfolded before his eyes on Sunday, June 8, at Roland Garros. At the end of a blockbuster lasting nearly five and a half hours, something never before seen in a Paris final, Carlos Alcaraz defeated Italy's Jannik Sinner to retain his crown. The Spaniard was down two sets to zero, faced three match points, but resisted all the headwinds to win in five sets (4-6, 6-7, 6-4, 7-6, 7-6).

Carlos Alcaraz can't be blamed for not warning. And more than once. "I think it's going to be a great Sunday for tennis fans," he first prophesied on Friday, before giving a taste of the state of mind that would inhabit him in the final: "In a Grand Slam, you always have time to come back." And the two men gave themselves plenty of time. From the first game, which lasted twelve minutes, the 15,000 spectators on Court Philippe-Chatrier understood that the spectacle would be worth the price of the ticket. Five hours later, they were certain they had witnessed one of the matches of the century when Carlos Alcaraz concluded it with a final forehand passing shot before collapsing, drunk with happiness.

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