Carlos Alcaraz on road to greatness as defending champion sets up Wimbledon hat-trick

As medical interruptions go, it was one of the less serious, an issue that didn’t need a qualified doctor to sort out.

In the fifth game of the first set of this gruelling match, it appeared a fly got into the right eye of Carlos Alcaraz. Kindly, the umpire, Marijana Veljovic, clambered down from her chair to have a look and, when the game was completed moments later, a man with a physio’s bag arrived on court to deal with the rogue pest.

Coincidentally, there was a similar issue in the first set of his epic French Open final against Jannik Sinner when a speck of clay got into Alcaraz’s eye. For a while after that break in play in Paris, Alcaraz struggled for rhythm but there was none of that in this 6-4 5-7 6-3 7-6 victory.

The Wimbledon champion’s sight was never focused on anything other than a third consecutive final appearance. Taylor Fritz, the American fifth seed, was inspired in winning the second set but Alcaraz’s concentration never slipped, the delicate drop-shot one his most potent weapons.

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Remarkably, the two-time winner has now won 20 successive matches at Wimbledon. And in all tournaments, the 22-year-old Spaniard is on a 24-match winning streak. He will now be favourite to win Sunday’s final as he bids for a sixth Grand Slam title.

Bearing in mind he only turned 22 a couple of months ago, Alcaraz is posting numbers that will inevitably see him challenge the Grand Slam figures set by the likes of Novak Djokovic, Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. At this tender age, he is already one of the greats.

But Alcaraz was seriously tested by Fritz, even though there was an air of inevitability about his eventual triumph. In a power-packed showdown, most rallies were brutal but short, probably as a consequence of the searing heat, which saw the contest halted twice during one game as spectators wilted on Centre Court.

Fritz sent cold water over to the first tennis fan to suffer the effects of the 32-degree temperature and the umpire came down from her chair to check the incident was not too serious. But no sooner had play resumed than another spectator had to be attended to by stewards, receiving care beneath umbrellas.

Play was again stopped but Alcaraz and Fritz, 27, were able to resume when the woman was helped from the court and taken to the medical rooms. Hopefully, both spectators were okay.

The temperature clearly made it tough for the players but the standard was still sky-high, Alcaraz playing the sort of tennis that has illuminated his passage to another final. "It was a really difficult match as always when I have to play against Taylor,” Alcaraz said. “It was even tougher with the conditions, it was really hot today.

“I'm really proud of the way I stayed calm and thought clearly. I'm pleased about my level today. I dealt with the nerves - playing here in a semi-final is not easy.” As well as his mental composure, his athleticism is remarkable. And that was one of the factors that gave him the edge over Fritz, whose fantastic serve kept him in the match for so long.

But he finally wilted in the fourth set tie-break and Alcaraz can now clearly see a third consecutive Wimbledon title.