Many men's tennis fans will be getting the gold medal matchup they wanted as Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz will meet in Paris at Roland-Garros on Sunday in the finals.
Djokovic's surgically repaired knee did not appear to slow him down a bit as he finally reached a Summer Olympics singles final for the first time, defeating Lorenzo Musetti of Italy 6-4, 6-2 on Friday night.
Djokovic will play Carlos Alcaraz for the gold on Sunday. It is a rematch of the Wimbledon final three weeks ago.
Serbia's Djokovic, 37, is the oldest man in a men's singles final at the Olympics; Spain's Alcaraz, 21, is the youngest.
Both men are seeking their first Olympic gold medal. With a gold medal, Djokovic would become the fifth player ever to complete the coveted "Golden Slam," by winning all four Grand Slam single tournaments plus an Olympics gold medal.
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Djokovic came into his semifinal against Musetti with an 0-3 record in that stage at the Games, losing to the eventual champion each time: Rafael Nadal (Beijing), Andy Murray (London) and Alexander Zverev (Tokyo). Djokovic mentioned that “hurdle” repeatedly the other day.
Paris 2024 Summer Olympics and Paralympics
Watch all the action from the Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games live on Peacock
Of equal concern to Djokovic leading into Friday night was his knee, in which he felt what he described as “sharp pain” while getting past Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarterfinals Thursday night. Djokovic tore the meniscus in the knee while playing at the French Open in early June, then had surgery in Paris.
But Djokovic was just fine, instead bothered by things such as the chair umpire calling him twice for time violations and then warning him for an audible obscenity.
When it ended, Djokovic dropped to his back and stayed down on the court with his limbs spread for a few moments.
If Alcaraz wins, he would become just the second man (following fellow Spaniard Rafael Nadal) to win the French Open, Wimbledon and the Olympics in the same year.
When is the men's singles final at the Olympics?
The men's singles gold medal match at the Paris Olympics will be held on Sunday, August 4.
The exact time time for the match at Roland Garros' Court Philippe-Chatrier has not been set but is not expected before 6 a.m. ET.
How to watch Djokovic and Alcaraz in men's gold medal finals at Olympics?
The men's gold medal final will air live on Peacock and nbcolympics.com. You can stream it live at the link here.
It will air later in the evening Sunday on CNBC.
