PARIS—It was Carlos Alcaraz, not Novak Djokovic, who conjured up the “How did he do that?!” shot in the French Open semifinals that went viral in minutes and will be talked about for years.
It was Alcaraz, 20, not Djokovic, 36, who had youth on his side, of course, the widest gap between Grand Slam semifinalists since 1991. It was Alcaraz, not Djokovic, who complained to his coach in the early going on an 85-degree afternoon in Court Philippe Chatrier that the points weren’t long enough to wear down his opponent.
And yet it was Alcaraz, not Djokovic, who succumbed to the heat and the intensity and, by his own admission, the nerves of the occasion. It was Alcaraz, not Djokovic, whose body broke down. And so it is the No. 3 seed Djokovic, not No. 1 Alcaraz, who will play on in Paris with a chance to add to his trophy collection….