Novak Djokovic Beats Alcaraz to Win 1st Gold Medal in Olympic Men's Tennis Bracket

Novak Djokovic is an Olympic gold medalist at last.

After three former men's singles semifinal appearances ended in heartbreak, Djokovic won straight tiebreaks to prevail against reigning French Open and Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz 7-6(3), 7-6(2) at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Djokovic called the fight against Alcaraz an "incredible battle," per tennis journalist José Morgado.

"I put my heart, soul, body, family, everything on the line to win the Olympic Gold at the age of 37," Djokovic said, per Morgado.

Djokovic is the oldest man to claim a Summer Games tennis gold.

He is also the fifth tennis player to complete a "golden slam" by winning four majors titles and an Olympic singles gold. He joins tennis legends Andre Agassi, Stefanie Graf, Rafael Nadal and Serena Williams as the only players to have achieved the feat.

The match came just two months after Alcaraz won the French Open title on the courts at Roland-Garros.

But Djokovic's extensive experience on clay gave him the advantage as the 24-time Grand Slam winner fended off Alcaraz.

Djokovic was able to claim the win after expressing concern after the quarterfinals about pain in his surgically-repaired right knee.

Despite that worry, Djokovic dominated Italy's Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals to reach Alcaraz, then played confidently against his 21-year-old opponent.

Sunday's match marked the seventh time Djokovic and Alcaraz have faced one another in competition.

Most recently it was Alcaraz who evened the matchup series with a dominant three-set victory over Djokovic in Wimbledon final.

With Djokovic finding redemption in the rematch, he now leads the head-to-head series against Alcaraz, 4-3.

Djokovic saved eight break points on his way to winning the first set. Alcaraz fought his way back from a set point, but Djokovic captured the tiebreak to cap off a thrilling hour-and-a-half battle.

Alcaraz went up 6-5 in the second set, and looked near to closing it out before Djokovic pushed him to a tiebreak. There Djokovic dominated arguably the most significant tiebreak of his career.

Fans were thrilled by the tightly-contested action between the world No. 1 and No. 2.

Fans celebrated the tennis legend achieving one of the last remaining goals of his career. Some concluded that Djokovic has now officially reached the status as the greatest player of all time.

Djokovic now adds Olympic gold to a long list of singles career accomplishments that includes 10 Australian Open wins, three French Open titles, seven Wimbledon victories and four wins at the US Open.

Tennis competition continues Sunday with the gold medal match for women's doubles.