Why Alcaraz and Sinner’s French Open final transcended tennis

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In her latest Sky Sports column, Gigi Salmon reflects on an incredible French Open men’s final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner, while also speaking about her meeting with Coco Gauff’s parents Candi and Corey after her maiden triumph at Roland-Garros. She also discusses whether Britain is becoming a clay nation and Novak Djokovic’s poignant wave to the crowd in what could be his last appearance at the clay-court Grand Slam.

‘Where were you when…’ A question that will be asked with regularity when it comes to the men’s final at Roland-Garros which set a new record for the longest final in the tournament’s history, pushed the players in question up to and way beyond their limits, left spectators speechless and led me to say in commentary: “I love tennis” – something I don’t normally say out loud on air!

I had the honour of commentating on one of the best matches I have ever seen live, for Radio RG [Roland-Garros], and possibly the greatest Grand Slam final.

From high up in Philippe-Chatrier a match that started in the late afternoon sunshine in Paris finished four-hours and 29 minutes later under the floodlights.

A first Grand Slam final meeting between Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz, the first of many, a 12th meeting overall and, if we’re honest, the final most people wanted to see. When these two players face each other it doesn’t disappoint, it can’t, the contrast in styles, personalities and the desire to be the best.

Alcaraz, 22, has now won five Slam finals from five finals, after saving three championship points on his serve and doing something that he has never done before, coming from two sets to love down.

For his part, world No 1 Sinner recovered from both converting those championship points and then from being an early break down in the fifth to take us the distance in what is only his second tournament back after returning from his three-month suspension.

A tournament that started with a tribute to the ‘King of Clay’ Rafa Nadal with a plaque laid in his honour on the side the court, fittingly rounded off with a final for the ages.

I was lucky to be behind the scenes shortly after the match finished and close enough to see every emotion possible from those closest to the players, the tears of joy, sadness and pride. Many legends of the game were finding it hard to put into words what they had witnessed. When I asked tournament director Amelie Mauresmo how she felt, she replied ‘speechless’, before adding that she would be reflecting on a successful two weeks with a nice glass of red wine!

Gauff’s maiden French Open title

The atmosphere on Sunday backstage was in stark contrast to Saturday which was buzzing in the aftermath of Coco Gauff’s second Grand Slam title and her first in Paris.

Gauff’s three-set win over world No 1 Aryna Sabalenka stood out for its own reasons, difficult conditions, the American’s comeback, Sabalenka’s inability to deal with the conditions and possibly the situation, and the drama of how it played out.

After the match, Daniela Hantuchova and I spent time chatting with Gauff’s parents Candi and Corey, full of pride for their daughter and how she handled everything, remembering she is still only 21.

Dad Corey for a while now hasn’t sat in the box as his living and breathing every point became unmanageable in the box and in his own words: ‘I don’t handle it well, that’s why I don’t sit in the box, I bring too much negative energy, I struggle all the way through – I find a corner and I stay in it.’

He also said that her mental strength comes from her faith and having great ‘spiritual strength’, going on to say: ‘I have great belief in myself and it can be contagious. I always think I can be the best at everything as if I don’t believe it then no one will – you must just believe in yourself.’

Gauff’s coach JC Faurel said that any coach who tells you they are calm in the box are lying and that he was a mess inside, while Matt Daley who joined the team last year praised Gauff for being willing to make tweaks and changes during matches. The celebrations – they all confirmed – before the Gauff’s headed back to America were going to be big and lasted long into the night!

So a new Champion in Paris in Gauff, a final that may never be beaten, a fitting tribute to the ‘King of Clay’ at the start and, from a British point of view, four finals featuring British players.

Is Britain becoming a clay nation?

Someone posed the question recently, ‘is Britain becoming a clay nation,’ a strong statement and while some good inroads are being made, we’re still a long way from putting the red dirt at the top of the list of British players favourite surface.

Jack Draper came into the French Open as a contender as the world No 5 having had a fantastic clay swing reaching the final in Madrid and the quarter-finals in Rome.

But no one was picking him to win the title and to seriously challenge the likes of Alcaraz and Sinner on clay would have been very tough and he would fall in the fourth round to Alexander Bublik who played the match of his life!

It’s not to say Jack can’t or won’t in the future, all the signs look great and there’s so much to take away from the last few months.

Cam Norrie had an excellent run to the fourth round, ultimately falling to Novak Djokovic, his first-round win over former world No 1 Daniil Medvedev in five sets and nearly four hours was fantastic and having had a tough 18 months of so, there’s a lot for Cam to take on to the grass including a boost in his ranking. While Jack Fearnley continues to rack up firsts, picking up his first French Open wins and going down to Norrie in the third round.

On the women’s side, all three made it through to the second round with Katie Boulter and Sonay Kartal winning their first French Open matches and for Emma Raducanu she had the misfortune to run into a revived Iga Swiatek in round two.

There was, though, a title and four finals to celebrate, with Alfie Hewett and Gordon Reid winning their 23rd Grand Slam doubles title together and their six successive French Open doubles title with Hewett regrouping from losing the men’s wheelchair singles title earlier in the day to the world No 1 Tokito Odo.

Hannah Klugman, 16, became the first British girl to reach the final of the junior competition in Paris in 49 years, which was also her first Grand Slam singles final and there was disappointment for Joe Salisbury and Neil Skupski, who lost out in the men’s doubles final, having become the first British players to reach the final at Roland-Garros since 1936.

So in conclusion are we becoming a clay nation? No! Are we starting to enjoy it a bit more? Yes!

Have we seen Djokovic for the last time at Roland-Garros?

Someone who enjoys the clay with 20 of his 100 titles coming on the surface including three at Roland-Garros is Novak Djokovic but have we seen the last of him in the French capital?

He made a point of stopping in the middle of Court Philippe-Chatrier after his semi-final loss to Sinner, to take some time to applaud the crowd before reaching down to touch the clay.

He was asked in his post-match press conference if that was him saying goodbye to which he replied: “This could have been the last match ever I played here, so I don’t know.

“Do I wish to play more? Yes, I do. But will I be able to play in 12 months’ time here again? I don’t know. That’s all I can say for the moment.”

Sensible words from a 38-year-old who will be 39 when the French Open rolls around in 2026.

I have heard from people close to him that he wants to and intends to play on next year but there are other factors in play. If he secures Grand Slam title No 25, does he do a mic drop having achieved everything there is to achieve in the sport? He still has Wimbledon and the US Open to come this year and will the body continue to play ball, that ultimately led to Nadal walking away when he did.

What a couple of weeks it has been in the French Capital, ending with a match that has transcended tennis. On my flight back this morning it was the main topic of conversation among the other passengers, a mix of tennis fans and those who just happened to come across it and then couldn’t look away. I go back to what I said around four hours into the final, ‘I love tennis!’

Watch the ATP and WTA Tours, as well as the US Open in New York, live on Sky Sports in 2025 or stream with NOW and the Sky Sports app, giving Sky Sports customers access to over 50 per cent more live sport this year at no extra cost. Find out more here.

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