And then in the end, the Open spotlight was right back on the old man who made history. Back on Novak Djokovic, who has emerged from being a piece of the Big 3 equation to stand alone on top of the tennis universe.

The 36-year-old Serb took a record-equaling 24th singles Grand Slam title by outlasting Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6 (5), 6-3 in a test of wills over 3 hours 17 minutes in Sunday’s final under the closed roof at Arthur Ashe Stadium. Djokovic matched the mark set by Margaret Court, who won 13 of her titles before the Open era began in 1968.

Djokovic — who has won seven of the last 10 slams in which he has competed since 2021 while advancing to the final in two others — took complete control of this tournament by winning his final 15 sets after going down 0-2 to countryman Laslo Djere in Round 3.

Two years ago, Djokovic came to Queens with the chance to become the second man in the Open era to win the Grand Slam. Only Rod Laver in 1969 had done it. But Medvedev spoiled the party with a victory in straight sets.

Medvedev could not turn back Djokovic this time in a match that featured 54 rallies of nine shots or more. He could not stem the tide of history this time.

Until Sunday, the spotlight had been trained on Coco Gauff, who took the women’s title on Saturday by defeating the ascendant No. 1 player in the world, Aryna Sabalenka, 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, to claim her first Grand Slam championship at age 19.

She had been the main focus here — that and the unfulfilled promise of a dream Djokovic-Carlos Alcaraz final — from the first day when Gauff played Laura Siegemund in the first night match on Ashe in what became the most contentious match of the tournament.

Remember? Gauff seemed in serious trouble after dropping the first set, 3-6, to the 35-year-old German, whose delaying tactics between points irritated essentially everyone in the stadium other than those in Siegemund’s camp.

The wrath of the crowd came down upon Siegemund. Gauff, who had won the second set, 6-2, complained to the chair umpire in the decisive frame. Siegemund was none too pleased. Gauff took the third, 6-4, to advance before receiving the unabashed in-person endorsement of Michelle Obama, who had attended the match with her husband, former President Barack Obama.

By the way, Siegemund, who said in a memorable post-match press conference that she felt so aggrieved by her treatment from the crowd that she might never return, was hardly shattered by the experience.

The fact is that she advanced to women’s doubles final with partner Vera Zvonareva that was contested on Ashe Sunday afternoon, before being defeated by the team of Gabriela Dabrowski and Erin Routliffe.

Gauff blossomed under the bright lights, growing day by day by day. She faced third sets in four of her seven matches. She shined in the most pressurized moments. Gauff displayed uncommon grace and fortitude. A fair amount of talent, too. On Monday, the teenager will be ranked third in the world behind Sabalenka and Iga Swiatek.

She is she a huntress. But she also will be among the hunted. Gauff is big game now.

But if Gauff dominated the storyline on the women’s side — and perhaps, in this country, of the entire field — the prospect of a dream final between Djokovic and Alcaraz hovered over the tournament as if it was preordained.

The advancement of a trio of American men — Ben Shelton, Frances Tiafoe and Taylor Fritz — to the quarters was noteworthy. Shelton gained fame and perhaps some notoriety for his hang-up-the-phone victory celebration after defeating Tiafoe in their quarterfinal matchup that was turned back on him when Djokovic mimicked the celly after taking out the 20-year-old Yank in a straight-set semi that ended with a frosty handshake across the net.

Funny things can happen at the Open when an outcome appears preordained, such as the anticipated Djokovic-Alcaraz match. Come to think of it, these funny things happen when Daniil Medvedev becomes part of the equation.

For it was the 27-year-old Russian who, well, slammed the door on Djokovic’s Slam with a stunning 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 victory over the Serb in the 2021 final. And it was Medvedev who shattered dreams on Friday by defeating Alcaraz, 7-6 (3), 6-1, 3-6, 6-3 with a stunning display of tennis in holding 18 of 19 service games. He made Alcaraz look like just any other player.

Sunday, though, even though he pressed Djokovic and forced him to run miles to track down balls in extended rallies, the Russian could not overcome his opponent.

This time, history could not be denied.

History made by Djokovic.