Carlos Alcaraz beat Alexander Zverev in the longest Australian Open semifinal in history to secure his maiden final in Melbourne
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MELBOURNE — Chasing his first Australian Open title, world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz beat third seed Alexander Zverev in the longest Australian Open semifinal in history on Friday to secure his maiden final in Melbourne.
After appearing to recover from the upper right leg injury that hampered him from late in the third set, the Spaniard rallied from 3-5 in the decider to seal his first final appearance in Melbourne with 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-7(3), 6-7(4), 7-5. Moreover, he also became the youngest player to reach all four major finals in the Open era.
In the longest Australian Open semifinal contested and the third-longest match at Melbourne Park, the five-hour, 27-minute triumph kept the Spaniard’s bid for the career Grand Slam afloat. With his semifinal victory, the 22-year-old Spaniard moved within one win of becoming the youngest man to complete the Career Grand Slam (winning the singles title at all four majors).
Two-time reigning champion Jannik Sinner or 10-time champion Novak Djokovic stand between him and a seventh Grand Slam trophy on Sunday. If he can defeat Sinner or Djokovic in Sunday’s final, Alcaraz will break countryman Rafael Nadal's record for the youngest player to complete a career slam.
History suggests that world No. 1s have often thrived at the Australian Open, a precedent that Carlos Alcaraz is aiming to uphold as he sits one win from his maiden Melbourne crown.
Eight members of the prestigious ATP No. 1 Club have combined for 16 Australian Open titles while simultaneously holding the top spot in the PIF ATP Rankings. Alcaraz’s great rival Jannik Sinner accomplished the feat last season, the second player to do so in the past five years (Novak Djokovic, 2021).
Alcaraz has reached the quarter-finals in Melbourne in each of the past two seasons. Should the Spaniard go all the way to the title, he would join Pete Sampras and Rafael Nadal as the only players to be World No. 1 in the ATP Rankings at the time of their first Australian Open trophy.
The six-time major winner's lone major triumph while holding No. 1 honours came in 2023 at Wimbledon, where he outlasted Djokovic in a five-set final to end the Serbian’s 34-match winning streak at the All England Club. In 2022, Alcaraz won his maiden major title at the US Open and became World No. 1 following that victory. At age 19, Alcaraz became the youngest No. 1 in ATP Rankings history.