Carlos Alcaraz, a teen emerging star, stunned world number one Novak Djokovic in a three-set thriller to get to the Madrid Open final.
The 19-year-old Spaniard won 6-7 (5-7) 7-5 7-6 (7-5) after defeating Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals.
Alcaraz handled everything Djokovic threw at him, and wowed the home fans with some spectacular drop shots.
In Sunday’s final, he will face defending champion Alexander Zverev, who defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Zverev, ranked third in the world, defeated the Greek world number five 6-4 3-6 6-2 to win his first match on clay.
On clay court, Alcaraz became the first player to defeat 21-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal and 20-time major winner Novak Djokovic on consecutive days.
He’s having a fantastic season, having won his maiden Masters 1000 championship in Miami last month, propelling him into the world’s top ten for the first time.
“It gives me a lot of confidence going into the final,” Alcaraz said.
“I know I played a pretty fantastic game, and I believe I can play against and defeat the top players in the world for the rest of the season, so that gives me a lot of confidence.”
The teenager got off to a good start, breaking Djokovic in the first game, but the Serb fought back in the eighth game to tie the match at 4-4.
Late in the set, Alcaraz handed Djokovic a few of break-point opportunities, but he couldn’t convert.
In the first-set tie-break, he moved up 6-2, and despite the Spaniard’s best efforts, Djokovic won.
The second set was as close, but Djokovic’s energy waned late in the game, and he served a tired-looking service game that the teenager took advantage of to tie the match.
In the deciding set, Djokovic regained his flow, although he was put under strain on his serve when Alcaraz earned a match point in the 10th game.
The Serb, however, replied beautifully with an ace to tie the match at 5-5. The match would be decided on another tie-break if both players held their following service game.
Alcaraz jumped out to a 2-0 lead early on and never looked back, winning on his third match point with a forehand winner to become the youngest-ever Madrid finalist.
