Wimbledon 2023 LIVE: Reaction after Carlos Alcaraz defeats Novak Djokovic in final for the ages

Wimbledon has a new champion, and a new hero. To break new ground and end Novak Djokovic’s dominance at the All England Club, Carlos Alcaraz had to go to a place no one else had dared to reach, dragging the most successful men’s player of all time into a battle that saw this final live up to its hype and will be remembered as one of the greatest ever staged here.

In overturning history, Alcaraz played with a spirit of infectious belief and carried Centre Court with him.

The 20-year-old Spaniard met Djokovic head on, denying the Serbian a fifth consecutive Wimbledon title, refusing to go down against the game’s most formidable force and a legend of the sport who had won 104 matches in a row from a set up at the grand slams.

Wimbledon 2023 is over and after two weeks of incredible tennis, rain interruptions, wonderful success and tear-inducing heartbreaks there are two new champions at SW19.

On Saturday, the unseeded 24-year-old Czech, Marketa Vondrousova, swept past crowd favourite Ons Jabeur to lift the Venus Rosewater Plate on Centre Court. She won in straight sets and couldn’t believe how she’d managed to pull off the feat almost a year after wrist surgery.

Yesterday was the men’s singles final. Carlos Alcaraz went up against Novak Djokovic and fought through a five-set thriller. Djokovic, aiming to win his fifth title in a row and eighth overall, took the first set in rapid fashion but Alcaraz dug deep and nicked the second in a tiebreak. By the end of the fourth the match was level yet an early break of Djokovic’s serve in the deciding set gave Alcaraz the advantage and he made sure to keep.

The 20-year-old sealed his victory and inflicted a first Centre Court defeat on Novak Djokovic in a decade. Magnificent stuff.

Carlos Alcaraz: “It’s big moment not just for me, but for my family, for all the people around me. It’s really, really special moment.

“I start playing tennis thanks my dad. Really huge fan of tennis. I mean, he was watching tennis before I was born. It’s crazy. His whole life, it’s about tennis.

“I think for them, watching his kid making history, lifting the trophy, winning Wimbledon, is something incredible for them. For me to have them there, giving them a big hug, it’s something that I will never forget. I hope to have a photo from that moment because I’m going to keep forever.”

Carlos Alcaraz: “If I would have lost that set, probably I couldn’t lift the trophy. I probably could have lost in three sets, straight sets.

“I would say that gave me a lot of confidence, a lot of motivation to still going and to think that I’m able to win Novak in that stage.

“I am totally different player than French Open. I grew up a lot since that moment. I learned a lot from that moment.

“I took lesson from that match. I did something different before the match. I prepared a little bit different mentally before the match. I could deal with the pressure, the nerves, better than I did in French Open.

“I think was the mental part that allow me to stay there during the five sets.”

Carlos Alcaraz is here, and is very much still in shock after winning the Wimbledon final:

“It’s a dream come true for me, being a Wimbledon champion, something that I really wanted. Honestly, I didn’t expect to get it really soon. Yeah, it’s time to enjoy and share everything, all my feelings.

“Beating Novak at his best, in this stage, making history, being the guy to beat him after 10 years unbeaten on that court, is amazing for me.

“It’s something that I will never forget, that’s for sure. As I said, it’s great for the new generation, as well, I think to see me beating him and making them think that they are capable to do it, as well.

“It’s great for me and I think for the young players, as well.”

A very gracious Novak Djokovic continues to praise Carlos Alcaraz, the new Wimbledon champion:

“I must say he surprised me. He surprised everyone how quickly he adapted to grass this year. He hasn’t had too many wins on grass in the last two years that he played. Obviously him coming from clay, having the kind of style that he has.

“I think Queen’s helped him a lot. He was close to lose that first match, opening match, in Queen’s. Then he started to gain momentum, more and more wins against really good players.

“I must say the slices, the kind of chipping returns, the net play, it’s very impressive. I didn’t expect him to play so well this year on grass, but he’s proven that he’s the best player in the world, no doubt.

“He’s playing some fantastic tennis on different surfaces and he deserves to be where he is.”

Novak Djokovic on Carlos Alcaraz’s greatest strengths: “I think people have been talking in the past 12 months or so about his game consisting of certain elements from Roger, Rafa, and myself. I would agree with that. I think he’s got basically best of all three worlds.

“He’s got this mental resilience and really maturity for someone who is 20 years old. It’s quite impressive. He’s got this Spanish bull mentality of competitiveness and fighting spirit and incredible defense that we’ve seen with Rafa over the years.

“And I think he’s got some nice sliding backhands that he’s got some similarities with my backhands. Yeah, two-handed backhands, defense, being able to adapt. I think that has been my personal strength for many years. He has it, too.

“I haven’t played a player like him ever, to be honest. Roger and Rafa have their own obviously strengths and weaknesses. Carlos is very complete player. Amazing adapting capabilities that I think are a key for longevity and for successful career on all surfaces.”

Novak Djokovic, in his press conference after defeat to Carlos Alcaraz: “I’ve won some epic finals that I was very close to losing. Maybe this is kind of a fair-and-square deal I guess to lose a match like this for me here. Even though it hurts, it’s never easy to lose a close match.

“Credit to Carlos. Amazing poise in the important moments. For someone of his age to handle the nerves like this, be playing attacking tennis, and to close out the match the way he did... I thought I returned very well that last game, but he was just coming up with some amazing, amazing shots.

“Yeah, congratulations to him and to his team. What a tournament for him. What a match today to be part of. I hope, yeah, everyone enjoyed it.”

Novak Djokovic broke down in tears addressing his son in the stands after losing the men’s Wimbledon final to Carlos Alcaraz.

The 36-year-old had not lost at Wimbledon since 2017 and had not lost on Centre Court in over 10 years before a Spanish player 16 years his junior claimed the title.

It was a thrilling contest, Alcaraz refused to back down, despite a disappointing first set, but it only seemed to spur him on and the 20-year-old rebounded with force.

More from Carlos Alcaraz who was asked what it’s like to play in front of the king of Spain. He replied: “It’s really special. It’s special to play in front of royalty.

“King Felipe, I am really proud that you are here supporting me. When I played in front of you twice, twice I won, I hope you are coming more! It is really special and I have to thank you for coming and supporting.

“I fall in love with grass right now. It’s amazing. I didn’t expect to play in this level in a really short period. I have played just four tournaments on grass, I won Queen’s. It’s a dream come true. I am happy with the work we were doing, coming into the grass season. I learn really fast and I am really proud.

“It’s great to be a member here [which is a reward for winning Wimbledon]. It’s such an iconic club. It’s very special for me. I have to bring the card. I know Roger Federer had trouble getting in without the card!

“It’s really special to be a member of this amazing club, really iconic. I will come for sure.”