By Tony Fairbairn
- Carlos Alcaraz [3] v Alexander Zverev [4]
- H2H: Zverev leads 5-4
PARIS, FRANCE – Carlos Alcaraz is aiming to boost his hopes of achieving the career Grand Slam when he takes on Alexander Zverev in the Roland Garros final.
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Carlos Alcaraz [3] v Alexander Zverev [4] H2H & Match Fundamentals
The Roland Garros dream is still alive for Carlos Alcaraz as he outlasted rival Jannik Sinner in five sets to reach his first final in Paris. The Spaniard is the first man in the Open Era to make Grand Slam finals on all three surfaces before the age of 22 and now Alcaraz has more history in his sights as he aims to win three of the four Grand Slams. Standing in his way is familiar foe Alexander Zverev after the German defeated Casper Ruud to reach his maiden Roland Garros final.
| Carlos Alcaraz [3] v Alexander Zverev [4] | H2H: Zverev leads 5-4 |
| Roland Garros 2024 | Paris, France |
| Clay (O) | Prize Money: €1,200,000/€2,400,000 |
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Alcaraz has come through a tricky draw convincingly to reach his first Roland Garros final while Zverev overcame a 14-time champion and came through five set tests on his way to the final.
Carlos Alcaraz [3] route to the final
R1: J.J. Wolf [LL] 6-1 6-2 6-1
R2: Jesper De Jong [Q] 6-3 6-4 2-6 6-2
R3: Sebastian Korda [27] 6-4 7-6(5) 6-3
R4: Felix Auger-Aliassime [21] 6-3 6-3 6-1
QF: Stefanos Tsitsipas [9] 6-3 7-6(3) 6-4
SF: Jannik Sinner [2] 2-6 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-3
Alexander Zverev [4] route to the final
R1: Rafael Nadal [PR] 6-3 7-6(5) 6-3
R2: David Goffin 7-6(4) 6-2 6-2
R3: Tallon Griekspoor [26] 3-6 6-4 6-2 4-6 7-6(10-3)
R4: Holger Rune [13] 4-6 6-1 5-7 7-6(2) 6-2
QF: Alex De Minaur [11] 6-4 7-6(5) 6-4
SF: Casper Ruud [7] 2-6 6-2 6-4 6-2
Tale of the Tape – Key Stats (2024 – Clay)
| H2H: | Carlos Alcaraz (WR 3) | Alexander Zverev (WR 4) |
| Tournament Previous Best | Semi-Final (2023) | Semi-Final (2021, 2022, 2023) |
| 1st Serve % | 69 | 74.3 |
| Service Games Won % | 79 | 90.3 |
| Break Points Saved % | 64.5 | 68.9 |
| 2nd Serve Return Points Won % | 62.5 | 54.3 |
| Break Points Converted % | 45.7 | 33.9 |
Zverev’s serving has been clutch and effective this tournament but in the final he is up against the most efficient player when it comes to converting break points on clay in the form of Alcaraz.
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Playing Styles and Prediction
Alcaraz’s Roland Garros dream is still alive as he defeated his nearest rival in Sinner to reach a maiden final in Paris.
However Alcaraz is aiming for more history as the Spaniard is one Grand Slam away from the career Grand Slam being 75% completed, with a third Grand Slam title in his sights.
Speaking ahead of the final Alcaraz spoke about experiencing the joy in suffering and spoke about his delight of reaching a maiden Roland Garros final.
“You have to find the joy in suffering,” Alcaraz explained to the Roland Garros website.
“I think that’s the key, even more on clay here in Roland-Garros, long rallies, four-hour matches, five sets, you have to fight, you have to suffer, but as I talked with my team many, many times, you have to enjoy suffering.
“We had to fight. I learned from last year’s match against Djokovic that I was in the same position like today, but I know that in this moment you have to be calm, you have to keep going because the cramp is going to go away and you have to stay there fighting, trying to make shorter the points. It was a little weird, let’s say, the third set but I think the fourth set, the fifth set was… great tennis. I’m really happy about everything that I’ve done today, waiting for my moments until the last moment that I took it.”
However a big obstacle awaits Alcaraz in the form of Zverev who has battled five set thrillers and former champions and finalists to reach a second Grand Slam final.
Now the German will aim for a maiden Grand Slam title as he looks to beat Alcaraz for a second time at Roland Garros.
After his semi-final victory Zverev praised his aggressive style of play and was emotional at reaching a second Grand Slam final.
“I knew I had to be much more aggressive and I knew that I had to take it to him. I did, I’m happy that the balls went in today,” Zverev told the Roland Garros website.
“I can’t describe the feelings. Extremely happy, especially because I have so much history on this court. Some of the best memories and some of the worst memories happened on this court and I’m so happy to be in the final – I’m going to give it my all on Sunday.”
Alcaraz will need to be aggressive on the forehand as he cannot afford to give Zverev time on the ball to pick his spots.
Meanwhile Zverev will maintain consistent aggression on serve and will aim to pin Alcaraz behind the baseline using depth.
This should be an entertaining final between two in-form players but Alcaraz’s aggressive play as well as consistent variety should give him the edge in this final.
Prediction: Alcaraz in four sets.
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