Leading by two sets, the Spaniard began experiencing physical problems and the German got angry. At the press conference, Sascha said: “Carlos had an hour and a half where he practically wasn’t moving. I should have taken advantage of it”

A run-up, a lost point, a grimace, hands going to his sore right leg, bent over in pain. What’s going on? It’s 6-4, 7-6, 4-4, 15-30 in the Australian Open semifinal; Zverev is on the other side trying to mount a comeback, and something’s wrong with Alcaraz. His right leg isn’t responding, the world number one is limping, slowly making his way back to the baseline, taking longer than usual to serve. What’s going on with Carlos? The Spaniard steps up to serve, 30-30, tries to stretch, looks around. Cramps? A strain? Feeling unwell? Meanwhile, another serve, but the Spaniard doesn’t jump; he plays from a stationary position. Zverev is confused too; he doesn’t quite understand what’s going on, and it’s 5-4. Some warning signs, however, the TV commentary notes, had appeared earlier.

Third set, it’s 3-3 and Alcaraz is serving: the Spaniard approaches his bench and says, “I threw up, maybe I should take something, I don’t know, I have no energy.” The team encourages him to keep playing, but two games later Carlitos is on his last legs. Alcaraz calls a medical timeout; from the corner they shout at him, “Hang in there, there’s still time”—after all, he’s up two sets to zero. The other protagonist of the situation, Alexander Zverev, meanwhile, flies into a rage and sees red. The German goes to the supervisor and vents all his frustration: “It’s unbelievable that you can treat cramps, this is b****, it’s not fair,” adding a (very serious) “you’re protecting these two guys, always, all the time,” a reference not only to his rival Alcaraz, but also to Jannik Sinner. The Spaniard doesn’t give up; he gets up and, even from a standing position, manages to put Zverev in trouble by hitting with full force, without thinking twice. It comes down to a tiebreak; Carlos’s serve is a problem, and this time Zverev is more composed. Third set goes to the German.

cramps— Is he retiring? Is he not retiring? Alcaraz is limping, but he doesn’t even consider retiring. He continues to have his right leg massaged, and his left leg too, reinforcing the cramp theory, but by now it hardly matters. The Spaniard has decided to see this through to the end. Whatever happens. “I’m feeling a little better,” Carlos tells his bench, but on the court the situation hasn’t changed much. Zverev has everything to lose—he knows it all too well—but he’s unable to execute a truly clear-headed strategy. Alcaraz hits one drop shot after another, but the German takes too long to figure it out. Break points for Sasha at 3-2, saved. Carlos tries to psych himself up, saying, “Come on, Charly, one step at a time.” It goes to a tiebreak again. Alcaraz rallies the crowd, which is going wild and cheering furiously. Somehow, it’s 6-6 in the fourth set. Alcaraz recovers a mini-break, scores three points in a row, and goes up 4-3. He’s three points away from the match, from what would be a miracle. But it doesn’t happen. Zverev focuses, scores four points in a row, and it goes to a fifth set after over four hours of play.
comeback— Alcaraz stumbles, doesn’t give up, but gets broken right at the start of the set. It seems over, but Carlitos refuses to call it quits. At 2-1, Zverev serving, break point for Alcaraz from 40-0 for the German, Sasha’s second serve, Alcaraz hits a forehand long, then earns another break point but smashes it into the net. His shots lack precision, and his energy is starting to wane. But giving up isn’t on the Alcaraz menu: at 3-2, Carlos earns another break point, responds well, but a cruel net cord sends the shot down the line during the rally. Alcaraz even tries to engage the crowd, repeatedly putting his finger to his ear. By now it’s a battle, even if one of the two has run out of steam. Rod Laver Arena now truly resembles a Roman arena, and a Spaniard in gladiator form. The counterbreak finally comes when Zverev serves for the match at 5-3. Four games won in a row, and Carlos triumphs.

at the press conference— The German then made a point of reiterating his thoughts in the post-match press conference: “He was having cramps, and normally you can’t ask for a medical timeout for cramps. But it’s not my decision. I didn’t like it, but it’s not up to me. I simply said it was nonsense. He had an hour and a half where he practically wasn’t moving (smiles). Maybe I should have taken better advantage of it, winning the games and sets more quickly. That way, in the fifth set, he wouldn’t have had as much time to recover. But the way he moved in the fifth set was incredible again.” Sasha then said theirs was “an incredible battle. An unlucky finish for me, but to tell the truth, I had nothing left to give. Even at 5-4, I usually rely more on my serve, but my legs just wouldn’t push me up anymore. That’s how it went; it’s part of life,” said the world No. 3. “Honestly, I’m too tired right now to feel anything. Maybe in a couple of days I’ll feel more, but right now I’m just exhausted. I think we both pushed ourselves to the absolute limit, so I’m also proud of how I hung in there and came back from two sets down. Sure, it’s disappointing, but it’s only the start of the year. If I keep playing like this, training and working as I did in preparation, I believe it will be a good season for me.”