It is the midway point in The Championships. Carlos Alcaraz has been here before, and the real meat of the competition lies directly ahead.

Alcaraz responded to the moment with two hours and 43 minutes of brilliance to resist the full-blooded challenge Andrey Rublev 6-7(5), 6-3, 6-4, 6-4.

It was a battle of two titans, of two forehands and of two men at the very height of their powers. It was riveting and the atmosphere under the roof on Centre Court was electric.

“Andrey is one of the most powerful – if not the most powerful – players we have on tour, without a doubt,” Alcaraz said. “He is so aggressive with the ball to that forehand, that shot is very difficult to face.

“You feel he is pushing you to the limit in every ball, running from side to side, so that makes it very difficult to face him.

“But I’m really happy with the way I moved today. I think I played intelligent and smart today tactically. It was a really good match which I am really proud about.”

Rublev arrived on court with a clear plan: do not give the champion a moment of peace, not a second to settle. Chase him, harry him, give him no time whatsoever.

As plans go, it was a good one but it needed the No.14 seed to start at full pace and then keep up that pressure until the end of the match. No easy task, then.

For five games, it worked a treat.

Alcaraz took a few minutes to get all the moving parts of his game up to speed but by the time he was fully warmed-up, he was a break down.

Rublev had hit the ground running at full pelt; the serve was firing accurately and fiercely, the forehand was taking on Alcaraz’s more famous forehand – and matching it – and he was fully locked into the process.

But by breaking the Spaniard for a 3-1 lead and then holding without fuss, he had, in effect, stuck a stick in the hornets’ nest. Now the champion adjusted his focus, bringing his target into pin-sharp detail.

He snapped the Rublev serve with a ferocious dipping passing shot and dropped only one more point on his own serve as they headed to the tie-break.

He has raised his level by several notches. But on the other side of the net, Rublev was standing firm, still focused, still with his plan intact and still refusing to give the defending champion a moment to breathe.

The roar of relief when he took the first set (the backhand pass he produced to get to set point was eye-poppingly good) was long, it was loud and it was guttural.

For 51 minutes Rublev had been so controlled, keeping every emotion and stray thought at bay, as he poured every ounce of mental and physical strength into suppressing Alcaraz.

He had to let go for a moment. But only a moment, mind you; marching into the second set, the level did not drop from either man.

Alcaraz was now giving Rublev a bit of his own medicine. He served and volleyed from time to time; that kept the 27-year-old guessing. That broke up any rhythm. He also leant into his serve and clattered his forehand.

Rublev was keeping his cool under this barrage but something had to give. As Alcaraz pushed and pressed, the first cracks appeared with a couple of missed forehands and then the serve shattered on a double fault.

That was the second set gone.

“The break that I did in the second set turned around everything,” Alcaraz said, “and I started to feel more comfortable, more calm and thinking more clearly.

“It’s just about belief in yourself. Tennis is a sport that can change in just one point – the match can change completely.

“You have to stay there all the time, being strong mentally to stay there. I knew I was going to play better than in the first set.”

By now, Rublev had discovered a problem with his plan. His serve had to be almost perfect to keep the rallies short. If he was dragged into baseline rally, he was the second favourite.

But his touch at the net had deserted him so he dare not risk coming forward. He had to play at his absolute limit but, even then, Alcaraz’s defence was iron-clad while his serve was untouchable.

That was what turned the third set: save for one double fault, Rublev did nothing wrong. He had Alcaraz on the run; he had him scrambling far behind the baseline. And just when he seemed to have the champion in trouble, Alcaraz speared another forehand winner. Rublev had been broken again.

It was only going to be a matter of time before Alcaraz got his prize. He was piling on the pressure in every game.

His opponent was giving his all, he was taking his courage in both hands and standing up to the baseline to take on the Spaniard’s attack (retreating would have proved terminal).

And he was being pushed ever closer to the exit.

On Tuesday it will be Cameron Norrie’s turn to try to find a way to stop the irresistible force that is Carlos Alcaraz.

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