Novak Djokovic wins a high-class final against Carlos Alcaraz. The fact that the Serb breaks into tears afterwards has a very special reason, as he later reveals.
When Novak Djokovic sealed the win against Carlos Alcaraz with a powerful forehand down the line, he was overcome with emotion.
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In disbelief, the Serb dropped his racket, spread his arms and buried his face in his hands. With his mouth wide open, Djokovic screamed his joy a few seconds later before accepting the congratulations from his Spanish rival.
The fact that the spectacular 7:6, 7:6 victory was a very special one for the world number two was evident at the latest when he started crying afterwards, which he waited for to end hidden under his towel before grabbing the Serbian flag and going back onto the court.
Novak Djokovic cried uncontrollably after his final victory
“I don’t know what to say, I’m still shocked,” Djokovic said later at Eurosport. “I gave my heart, my soul, my body, everything to win this Olympic gold medal. Now, at the age of 37, I’ve finally done it.”
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Djokovic breaks his Olympic curse
The Olympic Games have been something of a curse for the “Djoker” so far. Only at the 2008 Games in Beijing did the dominator of the tennis scene manage to go home with a bronze medal.
“The pride of playing for Serbia was my motivation,” said Djokovic – who then went on to say that this was similar for his opponents.
“Carlos (Alcaraz) or Rafa (Nadal) also love playing for Spain, Andy (Murray) for Great Britain, Roger (Federer) for Switzerland,” he said. “Alex (Zverev) won gold for Germany in Tokyo. You see it in the reactions of these guys when they win for their country. It’s something very special.”
In his fifth Olympic Games, Djokovic finally wanted to enjoy the triumph he had longed for – and he succeeded. “I was in the semifinals three times, but for various reasons I never managed to overcome this hurdle.”
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‘Okay, let me do better this time’
When he faced Italian Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals on Friday, he said to himself: ‘Okay, let me do better this time.’ He did just that with ease, winning 6:4, 6:2.
The fact that he already had the silver medal in his pocket before the final made it easier for him.
“That’s why I wasn’t as nervous today as I would have been otherwise, because I had already secured a medal. But of course I wanted to show my best tennis and also win gold.”
That’s what Novak Djokovic did – before his emotions got the better of him.
