WHAT A FINAL, what an outstanding comeback, what a fabulous sporting rivalry this is.

Three times Carlos Alcaraz was a point away from surrendering his grip of the French Open to the world No.1 Jannik Sinner.

Three times he managed somehow, in thrilling, defiant fashion, to stay alive in this spell-binding contest.

And to the great delight of the majority of the well-heeled Roland Garros crowd, who were all getting excellent value for their money, the Spaniard went on to retain his status as the King of Clay in an unforgettable, historic fifth-set tie-break.

More than five hours and five sets of enthralling rallies saw Alcaraz drop to his knees and burst into tears, having done what he had never done before in eight previous attempts – win a tennis match having lost the opening two sets.

No man before had faced THREE Championship points on Court Philippe-Chatrier and then ended up lifting the Coupe des Mousquetaires a few hours later.

A 4-6 6-7 6-4 7-6 7-6 (10-2) triumph for the 22-year-old saw him bank £2.1million in prize money and lift a fifth major title, a feat only Bjorn Borg and Rafa Nadal had achieved earlier in their lives.

At five hours and 29 minutes, it was the longest final in the tournament’s history – and second longest in the Open Era – and Alcaraz became the third man this century to defend the French Open.

And on his natural surface, this will go down as his hardest fought Slam success.

It was gripping, edge-of-the-seat stuff, the best match in a Gen Z rivalry that will define men’s tennis for the next 10-15 years.

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This was one of the greatest matches we had ever witnessed in tennis. It was exhausting to watch.

Pity, too, the parents of both men who had to watch helplessly as their two sons knocked seven bells out of each other.

Sinner, who drank pickle juice to avoid cramping in the fifth set, lost for the first time at a major since the 2024 Wimbledon quarter-finals.

The reigning US Open and Australian Open champion saw his 20-match winning streak at the majors come to an end as he once again lost a match that went past the four-hour mark.

This final took place thirty-four days after his return to the sport following a controversial drugs ban.

It was only on May 5 when he returned to full-time competition having served a three-month suspension for failing two doping tests in March 2024 in the United States.

A shock deal was agreed with the World Anti-Doping Agency ahead of a proposed appearance at the Court of Arbitration for Sport but the settlement still generates anger and furore.

Sinner, 23, had been cleared of any wrongdoing by an independent panel after testing positive for the banned substance clostebol, which he claims entered his system via massages from his physiotherapist.

This showpiece occasion will surely be the first of many occasions when Sinner and Alcaraz, both under the age of 24, will contest a Grand Slam final.

Theirs is a rivalry that will define the next era of the sport – they already hold all of the four Slams – and this was the first men’s major championship match between two stars born in the 2000s. The future is already here.

Their head-to-head is also based on sportsmanship and respect – there were several moments when one of the aces swiftly conceded a point despite the officials calling the shot out.

Neither warrior barely gave an inch in an opening set that took 65 minutes – the first game alone, which saw Jannik hold serve, lasted 12 minutes.

Alcaraz was the clear favourite with the crowd and though Sinner was able to read his whipping and stinging forehand in set two, he always maintained faith that the fightback was possible.

Sinner had not dropped a set at one of the four big tournaments since the fourth round of the Aussie Open – Holger Rune snatched one that day – but a sequence of 31 consecutive sets was broken in set three.

Game nine of set four is one Sinner will remember for the rest of his life as he had three match points on the Alcaraz serve and yet he could not find a way past the Iberian matador.

The lanky red-haired ace was being stretched to his physical capacity and it was evident he was tiring as he decided not to run for some drop shots coming his way.

Commendably he remained competitive in the decisive set, breaking back when he was 5-4 down, but Alcaraz’s extra physicality proved crucial as he dominated a first-ever Championship tie-break.

A few metres from where there is a permanent plaque with Rafa Nadal’s footprint, the current Spanish superstar was crowned clay champion once again, 90 minutes after he had three times come close to elimination.

There was a lovely symmetry that the trophy was handed to him by former champion Andre Agassi, who himself had come from two sets down to shock Ukraine Andrei Medvedev in 1999.

At some point, once the celebrations have stopped, Alcaraz will have to think about getting ready for his Wimbledon defence, which starts in three weeks.

Because this was a bruising, physical heavyweight tie that pushed every sinew and muscle to his limits – and will live very long in the memory.