Novak Djokovic is a Grand Slam Champion for the 23rd time thanks to a 7-6(1), 6-3, 7-5 over Casper Ruud in the 2023 French Open final.
Djokovic, vying for his third French Open title, was the favourite heading into the final but had to overcome an edgy start as Ruud came out firing, using heavy spin on his forehand to force errors from the Serb’s racket, but he dug in to eventually prevail after 3 hours and 13 minutes.
In winning the title, Djokovic also reclaimed the No. 1 spot in the ATP Rankings from Carlos Alcaraz, overtook Rafael Nadal as the oldest Roland Garros champion at the age of 36 years and 20 days and became the first man to win all four Grand Slam tournaments at least three times. Seemingly every time he plays, more records tumble.
Quick Match Recap
Ruud kicked off the match with a confident hold to love and fashioned the match’s first break point in Djokovic’s opening service game.
Djokovic saved it and a second that followed, but after multiple deuces, a third break point went the Norwegian’s way when Novak botched a tricky overhead by decelerating the racket.
Ruud consolidated for 2-0 and soon found himself up 4-1. Despite Djokovic making some uncharacteristic errors, his serve was working well, keeping things close.
After holding for 2-4, he worked his way into a Ruud service game, botching another overhead that would have given him 15-40, but a break chance still presented itself at 30-40.
This time it was Ruud’s turn to miss an easy-ish overhead after a lengthy rally to hand the break back.
Novak then had to save a break point at 30-40 to hold for 4-4, and in game nine, it looked like he was in the ascendency.
However, a poor error helped Ruud avoid 0-40, and although Djokovic held a break point at 30-40, Ruud held to keep his nose in front.
Djokovic’s record in tie breaks has been flawless of late, and that trend continued in the first set; in the opening point, the Serb ripped a brilliant forehand up the line winner after Ruud had blasted a forehand into the corner to capture the mini-break, and he never looked back, taking the tie break 7-1.
After both players took lengthy toilet breaks, Djokovic started the second set as he finished the tie break, holding comfortably and then breaking for a 2-0 lead.
Despite the score, Ruud didn’t lie down and stuck to his guns on the forehand, which kept him within touching distance, but he couldn’t fashion a breakpoint opportunity in the entirety of the second set as Djokovic held to take it 6-3.
By the third set, Djokovic began to reap the benefits of what he’d sowed in the first two sets, dictating play from the baseline and aside from a 0-30 hole at 3-4, he was in complete control, breaking at 5-5 and then serving out the set to take his third French Open title, and 23rd Grand Slam overall.
Match Stats
Novak Djokovic
Casper Ruud
Aces
11
4
Double Faults
1
1
First Serve
73% (74/101)
64% (68/106)
1st Serve Points Won
80% (59/74)
57% (39/68)
2nd Serve Points Won
63% (17/27)
66% (25/38)
Break Points Saved
75% (3/4)
70% (7/10)
1st Return Points Won
43% (29/68)
20% (15/74)
2nd Return Points Won
34% (13/38)
37% (10/27)
Break Points Converted
30% (3/10)
25% (1/4)
Winners
52
31
Unforced Errors
32
31
Net Points Won
74% (20/27)
70% (14/20)
Service Points Won
75% (76/101)
60% (64/106)
Receiving Points Won
40% (42/106)
25% (25/101)
Total Points Won
58% (19/33)
42% (14/33)
Highlights
Thoughts on the Final
Another Grand Slam and another exceptional performance from Djokovic when it counts. While he didn’t have the best clay court swing heading into Paris, he peaked at just the right time, and his ability to produce his best tennis at critical moments is unrivalled.
In the final, Ruud put up an excellent performance and was the stronger player in the first set, but Djokovic had two things in his favour – his rock-solid serve, which kept him in the set and his ability to play flawless tennis in the tie breaks.
Playing at such a high level in the first set and getting the first break of serve but still somehow losing it must have been deflating for Ruud, but he didn’t fold cheaply and, for the most part, stuck to his guns on the forehand.
However, with that first set in the bag, Djokovic could relax, and he started hitting the ball harder to dictate play which meant Ruud was more on the back foot, and a touch of passiveness crept into his groundstrokes.
That allowed Djokovic to assert his dominance, and Ruud didn’t create another breakpoint in either the second or third set, as Novak was in complete control en route to victory.
What did you guys think of the final? How good will Novak be once he can hit an overhead? Let me know in the comments.