ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:
Tennis fans woke up this morning with joy that the sport they love is in good hands.
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
It was a big two-week swing of emotions. The French Open started with a tearful farewell to the phenomenon that was Rafael Nadal, 14-time winner, in Paris.
SHAPIRO: And then yesterday's men's finals...
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ADAM LEFKOE: It is a match for the archives, a moment that tennis will measure itself against itself for years to come.
SHAPIRO: Pundits like TNT's Adam Lefkoe believe that the era of the Big Three - Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic - has ceded ground to a new era, the new two...
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LEFKOE: Sinner and Alcaraz - they are the current. They are the future.
SUMMERS: Italy's Jannik Sinner and Spain's Carlos Alcaraz played a 5 1/2-hour thriller on Sunday, the second-longest Grand Slam final in men's singles history. Alcaraz, who at 22 years old already had four major titles under his belt, captured his fifth after overcoming a two-set deficit against 23-year-old Sinner.
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UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: Oh, it's over.
(CHEERING)
UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: Carlos Alcaraz reigns in Roland-Garros.
SUMMERS: Their play was so competitive that point-for-point at the end, Sinner earned one more than Alcaraz, 193 to 192.
SHAPIRO: Between the two of them, they have won the past six Grand Slam titles. After the match, Alcaraz anticipated a great future for his opponent.
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CARLOS ALCARAZ: I'm pretty sure you're - I mean, you're going to be champion, not once but many, many times. It's a privilege to share the court with you in every tournament.
SUMMERS: During the women's final Saturday, 21-year-old Coco Gauff staged her own comeback, dropping the first set against reigning French Open champ Aryna Sabalenka to win the final two sets.
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UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: That's out.
(CHEERING)
UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Speaking French).
UNIDENTIFIED SPORTSCASTER: Coco has conquered the clay.
SHAPIRO: With that victory, Gauff became the first American to win the French Open since Serena Williams a decade ago. She also became the youngest American to win the title since Serena Williams did it back in 2002.
SUMMERS: In her postmatch speech, Gauff became emotional, recounting the last time she got to the French Open finals.
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COCO GAUFF: I was going through a lot of things when I lost in this final three years ago. And I'm just happy to be here. A lot of dark thoughts - and just the fact that I stayed to it just means a lot.
SUMMERS: For those of you who are feeling real FOMO after this weekend, well, you have two weeks of Wimbledon starting June 30.
SHAPIRO: And, with such young superstars, years of great tennis ahead. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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