Alcaraz creates history after beating Djokovic to lift Australian Open title

MELBOURNE, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- Top seed Carlos Alcaraz won his first Australian Open title on Sunday to complete his set of major trophies after outlasting Novak Djokovic in the final.

In chilly conditions at Rod Laver Arena, the 22-year-old Alcaraz became the youngest winner of all four Grand Slam tournaments by defeating the 24-time major champion 2-6, 6-2, 6-3, 7-5 in just over three hours.

A combination of power and touch wore Djokovic down as Alcaraz lay on the court after winning his seventh Grand Slam title.

The 38-year-old Djokovic started strongly but ran out of energy as his bid for a record 25th major title fell short.

It was the first time that the 10-time tournament champion Djokovic had lost a final at Melbourne Park.

There was attention on how the players would respond after their five-set semifinal victories on Friday and, initially, Djokovic showed no ill effects.

Djokovic played aggressively in his semifinal win against defending champion Jannik Sinner and again started on the front foot in the final.

He dominated on serve and piled on the pressure to break in the fourth game. Djokovic's relentless hitting unsettled an out-of-sync Alcaraz as he took the opening set in 33 minutes.

Alcaraz responded early in the second set and soon drew level as he began to find his all-around game.

Djokovic looked increasingly fatigued in the third set as his younger opponent gained control with a series of spectacular shots.

Djokovic was under pressure early in the fourth set before tapping into his resilience to save a series of break points, offering a wry smile after holding at 1-1.

He kept fighting but struggled to match Alcaraz's movement as the Spaniard closed out the match to make history in Melbourne.■