For most, Carlos Alcaraz is rightfully seen as The Next Big Thing in men’s tennis. The Spanish superstar already has four Grand Slam titles to his name, and he’s only 21 years old. But even he can’t beat an all-time legend like Novak Djokovic, who was hellbent on achieving his greatest goal.
Sunday saw Alcaraz get taken to school by an experienced Djokovic in the men’s gold medal singles final in Paris. For Djokovic, it’s one of the crowning moments of his career, especially in taking apart a young phenom like Alcaraz to do it. For Alcaraz, he was the youngest man in the men’s Olympic final in over a century, and it’s a great accomplishment to attain silver.
But it still hurts to fall short for your country when you have a chance at ultimate glory:
Carlos Alcaraz is in tears after losing the gold medal match to Novak Djokovic at the Olympics.
Chin up, Carlos.
Incredible effort this week… you’ll win the gold one day.
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 4, 2024
After the match, Alcaraz explained why he was moved to tears and why he’ll ultimately hold his head high, understanding he’ll likely have more opportunities for gold down the line:
Carlos Alcaraz after losing to Djokovic in the Olympic gold medal match
“It’s painful to lose the way I lost this match. I had my chances to probably be up in the match. I couldn’t take it. Novak was playing great. He deserves this. In the tough moments he increased his level.… pic.twitter.com/CnXzZwlJRe
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) August 4, 2024
That’s exactly the right perspective.
Alcaraz is a competitor, so losing is never easy when you reach the doorstep of a new achievement. But there’s also no reason to wallow in sadness over what could’ve been. Recognizing that you gave it your all and still left the Olympics with a medal — which is no small feat — still means the world.
Alcaraz’s time for Olympic gold will come. For now, he should savor this experience in every possible way.
