Carlos Alcaraz toys with a tennis ball, passing it between his legs while glancing at his bench. He has the Wimbledon final under control, but it’s a suspenseful control because on the other side of the court stands Novak Djokovic, the man who always makes a comeback and can save three match points. The Serbian, stunned by the Spaniard’s superiority, has no violin to celebrate with. He’s being shaken from side to side, beaten like no one has done since Rafa Nadal at Roland Garros, forced to lose a final without hardly appearing in it (6-2, 6-2, 7-6 (4)).

Alcaraz transformed from a promising player to the favorite for this edition, but no one expected him to add the label of a monster, a title devourer. Because the Spaniard didn’t just beat Djokovic, something many have done in history; he managed to reduce him to the minimum, erase him from the court, delivering one of the biggest thrashings of his career. And he did it with a simplicity that scares anyone who plans to be his rival in the coming years.

At 21, Alcaraz equaled Manolo Santana’s four Grand Slams, became the sixth man to achieve the Roland Garros-Wimbledon double, and is the first Spaniard to defend the title at the All England Club. Alcaraz needed fifteen minutes and five break points to break the Serbian’s serve for the first time, but from there, he didn’t stop. It was as if Djokovic was playing the violin and Alcaraz was enjoying dancing with him.

The Spaniard was a spectacle of drop shots, counter drop shots, counterattacks, and dominance. Djokovic hit the ball cleanly and was able to direct it, but Alcaraz always returned it harder and better. And the most surprising thing was the calm with which he did it. With half the match in his favor, 6-2 and 1-0, the Murcian strolled around his side of the court, playing with the ball and thinking about his next trick to frustrate the 24-time Grand Slam champion, the man who wanted Roger Federer’s record of eight Wimbledons and met Alcaraz defending his idol’s legacy.

This time, facing him was a Grand Slam champion, world number one, and dominator of the present and future of this sport. Still, Djokovic almost made a comeback. In the sixth game of the third set, he had his first break point since the first set, and Alcaraz, who saved it with a near-ace, nullified four equal in his most tense moment.

The shouts of "Nole, Nole!" were soon replaced by "Carlos, Carlos!" and not even the sarcastic "Come on England" unsettled Alcaraz on his path to victory, until he reached the abyss of serving for Wimbledon against Djokovic.

Alcaraz, who had already exorcised the ghost of Roger Federer on this court in 2019, felt his pulse tremble like Andy Murray did in 2013. He got to 40-0 on his serve, three match points. In a flurry of net shots and errors, and an untimely chant of "Champions, champions" from a fan, Alcaraz lost the next five points.

He got into a bind that few escape, where many sink. Having accustomed his fans to doses of suffering throughout the tournament, the final was no exception.

The third set, which if lost would have been a significant breach, went to a tiebreak, and there Alcaraz showed that despite the nerves, he is still the best.

With a 5-4 lead in the tiebreak, two points from victory, Alcaraz broke Djokovic with a drop shot first and didn’t let nerves get to him with the fifth match point. The return on the second serve hit the net, and Alcaraz threw his racket and turned to his bench. Carlos Alcaraz is the best, and not even Djokovic at Wimbledon can dispute it.