Novak Djokovic outlasted Carlos Alcaraz to claim the Olympic gold medal in the men’s singles final at Roland Garros on Sunday. The 37-year-old overcame his Spanish rival in straight sets 7-6 (3) 7-6 (2) in just under three hours of brutal clay court tennis on Court Phillippe-Chatrier. It was the completion of the missing blue tick on his CV, ending 16 years of hurt – including three semi-final Olympic losses -to claim gold.

Djokovic had visually been stunned by the manner of his defeat at Wimbledon to the same opponent. The return fixture was more like the rebirth of the cyborg brand of qualities he is known for; incredible metal (and mental) strength, clean hitting and the ability to go into tunnel vision mode when facing severe headwinds from the other side of the net.

On Centre Court Sunday three weeks ago, the Serb was two sets down after 77 minutes. Here, the first five games alone took 36. He wasn’t going anywhere, nudging ahead constantly on the scoreboard despite being blitzed at times by the thunderbolts from Alcaraz’s toy-like turbo wind-ups. Both men were in good spirits but also showed huge signs of frustration when shots went astray. This meant more.

The opening act finally ended after 93 minutes with a Djokovic stop volley at the net in a tiebreak that he won 7-3. Both men refused to be broken during the 24 games outside of the shootouts despite multiple chances. It was the Spaniard who looked world weary against a wall of total defiance, especially in the marathon 15-minute ninth game of the first set when he missed five chances to grab the advantage.

The second set saw Djokovic raise his game, having stoked the furnace by winning the opener. He now had total focus, cranking up the pressure with that extra comfort of scoreboard pressure. Alcaraz’s service games were less secure, although he came on strong at the back end to set up tiebreak 2. An incredible Djokovic return from an explosive Alcaraz forehand at 2-2 was too much to bear for the Spaniard. He won no further points in the breaker to cede the match. There was simply nothing left to give from either man. Despite the bare facts of a straight sets win, the jeopardy was compelling.

If this had been a five-setter, Alcaraz would have still very much fancied the job, but the sprint format of three (which these two have a habit of extending into Marvel epics) favored the older competitor. Djokovic was in an unrelenting mood, the kind that eventually wears down a rival, even a 21-year-old who is threatening to burst the dam of records over the next decade. The only water that was falling were the tears of joy from the winner immediately after the match. The loser couldn’t speak. It was Iga Swiatek all over again.

This was the No. 1 seed’s final shot at the highest point of the Olympiad podium. The cumulative progress of a career that has seen so many highs but constant lows in 2024 elevated the importance of this contest. Djokovic claimed a bronze at Beijing in 2008, but the rematch with the Spaniard was perfectly pitched. He had done his homework on what went wrong at SW19 and was hitting the ball much cleaner. The main concern was to keep Alcaraz’s forehand from pounding his forecourt, especially with the knee brace that impoverished his fitness and movement after the meniscus operation in June.

“I’m still in shock. I put my heart, my soul, my body, my family, my everything on the line to win Olympic gold at age 37. I’ve finally done it,” an ecstatic and exhausted Djokovic said afterwards. Alcaraz put his head in his hands at the end, trying to work out how a man he dismantled so clinically had come back with the answers. Again. Alcaraz was as devastated as he had been after the Cincinnati Open loss when the Serb rose up from the disappointment of the 2023 Wimbledon final to wreak revenge.

Djokovic said that Alcaraz just keeps coming. After this exhilarating contest between the two biggest stars in men’s tennis, the Murcia man must be thinking the same. It could happen all again in New York next month. The episodes are running out but there’s still enough fire in the oldest Olympic singles champion since 1988 to keep the sequels of the highest quality.