Paris, 10 June 2024 (dpa/MIA) - Carlos Alcaraz fights to a 6-3, 2-6, 5-7, 6-1, 6-2 victory over Alexander Zverev to claim a first French Open title which makes him the youngest player to win grand slams on three different surfaces.

Alcaraz, 21, dropped five games in a row each in losing the second and third set but allowed his opponent only three more games as he regrouped to triumph in 4 hours 19 minutes to follow a proud Spanish title tradition on the Roland Garros clay.

Alcaraz had previously won the hard court US Open in 2022 and the Wimbledon grass court grand slam last year. His 14th overall career title made him emulate his coach Juan Carlos Ferreiro, record 14-time winner Rafael Nadal, and other Roland Garros champions from Spain such as Sergi Bruguera ad Carlos Moya.

Olympic champion Zverev, 27, beat a not fully fit Nadal in the first round and reached the final for the first after semi-final exits the previous three years. But the fourth seed from Germany fell short of a maiden grand slam title again, having previously lost the 2020 US Open decider against Dominic Thiem from two sets up.

Photo: archive