French Open: ‘Beyond belief!’ – Carlos Alcaraz shot so good ‘even Novak Djokovic is laughing’

Carlos Alcaraz lost the opening set and struggled early on against Novak Djokovic, but he produced something incredibly special in the second set at the 2023 French Open.

Djokovic, the 22-time Grand Slam singles champion, forced the Spaniard to the back of the court with a clever shot, only to watch on in disbelief as his opponent came up with a magical winner to get the crowd on their feet on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

The world No. 1 did not find it easy to settle in the huge semi-final clash and was trying to find another level serving at 1-1 in the second set, having lost the first 6-3 to the two-time victor at Roland-Garros who is in pursuit of a hat-trick of Paris crowns.

Djokovic drew his opponent to the net with a cheeky drop shot that was very well executed, but the sheer pace of the Spaniard saw him get to the ball with relative ease. The best was very much yet to come.

The Serb then drifted a deep shot to the back of the court that forced Alcaraz to scramble to the baseline, but the position of his body made retrieving the ball even more difficult.

He clearly considered playing a tweener, but at the last minute twisted his torso and instead scooped the ball with a flick of his wrist for an utterly outrageous cross-court winner.

It was an effort that left the 20-year-old laughing to himself as he received a standing ovation, while Djokovic simply stood and applauded while laughing along.

“Way too good!” exclaimed John McEnroe on commentary for Eurosport.

“Even Djokovic is laughing! I’m not even going to say he wasn’t trying it, or try to get it in the court somehow, but this was beyond belief.”

Simon Reed agreed: “You take the speed for granted, but the precision with this shot. The audacity of it.”

Alcaraz is seeking his maiden triumph at Roland-Garros having won his first Grand Slam title at the US Open last year.

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On June 10 and 11 strap yourself in for a live sport rollercoaster ride. With the finals of Roland-Garros, 24 Hours of Le Mans, Speedway Grand Prix, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, the Criterium du Dauphine, MotoGP and the Champions League final, it’s the Weekend of Champions live on Eurosport, discovery+ and BT Sport.