‘Prince of Wimbledon’ is pride of Spain as sporting stars toast Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz was the star of world sport after his stunning win over Novak Djokovic at the age of just 20 gave him his first Wimbledon men’s singles title.
The Spaniard triumphed in a five-set epic, denying the Serb his 24th Grand Slam title after a 1-6, 7-6(6), 6-1, 3-6, 6-4 arm wrestling on Center Court Title.
His exploits sparked praise from the tennis world and beyond as they took to social media following a thriller at SW19.
Compatriot Rafael Nadal, who has 22 Grand Slam titles to his credit, tweeted: “Congratulations @carlosalcaraz. You brought us great joy today and I am sure that our pioneer of Spanish tennis, Manolo Santana, has also been cheering everywhere he is, for example at Wimbledon, which you joined today.
“A really big hug and enjoy the moment, champion!!!”
Last year’s losing finalist Nick Kyrgios, who retired late this year due to injury, added: “I haven’t seen a full tennis match in a long time, haha. Many thanks to @DjokerNole and @carlosalcaraz for this incredible achievement. Congratulations to you both.”
There was praise from the organizers of the other three slam tournaments.
A series of posts on the official US Open Twitter account read: “What a match”, “This match was everything we could have hoped for” and “Can this rivalry please continue for a few more years?” while Roland-Garros described The Victory as “Prince of Wimbledon” and the Australian Open simply said: “Unstoppable”.
Alcaraz was presented with the trophy by the Princess of Wales, who was seated in the royal box with Prince William and her children, Prince George and Princess Charlotte, and Spain’s King Felipe VI. watched. Their Twitter account said: “What a game.” ! Congratulations @carlosalcaraz.”
There was cheering at Spain’s British Embassy as officials also tweeted: “Incredible, amazing, great, fantastic… What a match, what a champion.” Carlos Alcaraz wins his first #Wimbledon title, but certainly not the last.”
The young Spaniard’s triumph also impressed current and former athletes outside his sport, most notably Spain’s former Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea, who led the honours.
De Gea wrote: “Absolutely insane @carlosalcaraz” while Roma frontman Paulo Dybala said: “What a match we just watched @carlosalcaraz @DjokerNole!” Congratulations to both of you for a great final @Wimbledon!”
There was also a message from Real Madrid, the club the Murcia-born star supports.
It read: “Congratulations on your brilliant win at @Wimbledon, @carlosalcaraz. And congratulations on getting the top spot in the world tennis rankings. They are a source of pride for Spanish sport and for all madridistas.”
Former Barcelona striker Gary Lineker put his Spanish to good use by translating his tweet by saying: “Spectacular! What a game! What a player. What a champion. Congratulations to @carlosalcaraz. Splendid.”
Retired cricket superstar Sachin Tendulkar also gave him lavish praise.
Tendulkar said, “What a fantastic finale! Outstanding tennis from these two athletes! We are witnessing the rise of the next superstar in tennis. I will follow Carlos’ career for the next 10-12 years just like I did with @Rogerfederer.
“Congratulations @carlosalcaraz!”
Hollywood royalty also received recognition in the form of Ben Stiller, who tweeted: “Congratulations to @carlosalcaraz. What an incredible finale.”