PARIS – After more than 20 years the torch has definitively passed to a new generation in men’s tennis, and on Sunday the new generation lit up Roland Garros with pyrotechnics of their own.

With a Grand Slam final all to themselves for the first time, 22-year-old Carlos Alcaraz and 23-year-old Jannik Sinner co-created not only a classic five-setter but one of the greatest matches in history.

It was the longest singles final at the French Open: a five-hour-and-29 minute test of skill and will that was a pitch-perfect sequel to the epic Big Three duels for major titles. Though Alcaraz, the crowd-pleasing Spanish acrobat, looked like he was down and just about out, he rallied from a two-set deficit for the first time in his career: saving three straight championships points on his serve in the fourth set from 0-40 before going on to defend his French Open title by dominating the decisive match tiebreaker in the fifth set.

“Something completely unreal, if I’m being honest,” said Juan Carlos Ferrero, Alcaraz’s coach, of that gravity-defying comeback.

Final score: 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 [10-2].

All those numbers are worth committing to memory because tennis fans will be talking about this final for years: just as they still savor the 1980 Wimbledon final, won by Bjorn Borg over John McEnroe; or the 2008 Wimbledon final, won by Rafael Nadal over Roger Federer; or the 2012 Australian Open final, won by Novak Djokovic over Nadal.

Ranking great matches is subjective business, but it seemed quite clear, even accounting for recency bias, that this Alcaraz-Sinner belonged on the short list. It was true top-this tennis on a grand stage, with some dips and yips to be sure but also so much brilliance despite the stakes.

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