Alcaraz to face Sinner at Wimbledon in rematch of French Open final

First, Carlos Alcaraz did his part to set up The Grand Slam Rematch that the tennis world wanted, barely averting a fifth set and getting past Taylor Fritz 6-4, 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (6) in the semifinals on Friday to move within a victory of a third consecutive Wimbledon championship.

Then it was Jannik Sinner's turn keep up his end of the bargain, and he overwhelmed a not-fully-fit Novak Djokovic 6-3, 6-3, 6-4 to get to the final at the All England Club for the first time.

So get ready for Sunday: No. 1 Sinner vs. No. 2 Alcaraz for the title on the grass courts of Wimbledon, exactly five weeks after their riveting and remarkable final on the red clay of the French Open.

Sinner, a 23-year-old Italian, and Alcaraz, a 22-year-old Spaniard, are far and away the leaders of men's tennis, and are at the height of their powers right now. This will be the seventh straight major tournament won by one or the other.

Alcaraz is 5-0 in Grand Slam finals. Sinner owns three major trophies. "The things we are doing right now are great for tennis," Alcaraz said.

He takes a career-best 24-match winning streak into Sunday. Sinner will be in his fourth Grand Slam final in a row, after winning the U.S. Open last September and the Australian Open in January.

Alcaraz leads their head-to-head matchup 8-4, taking the last five.

He doesn't think what happened in their most recent meeting will have a carryover effect on Sinner this time.

"He's going to be better physically. He's going to be better mentally. He's going to be prepared on Sunday to give his 100%," said Alcaraz, who trailed the fifth-seeded Fritz 6-4 in the fourth-set tiebreaker before winning the next four points to end it.

Sinner and Alcaraz have taken over the sport as the so-called Big Three of Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal ceded center stage.

Federer and Nadal are retired. For the 38-year-old Djokovic, who was diminished two days after a "nasty" and "awkward" fall in the last game of his quarterfinal victory, his lopsided loss brought an end to his latest bid for an eighth Wimbledon title and an unprecedented 25th major trophy.

Djokovic said he definitely plans to come back for at least one more appearance at Wimbledon. He had reached the last six finals, winning four and finishing as the runner-up to Alcaraz in 2023 and 2024.