Madrid. The number three in the world, Carlos Alcaraz, entered the round of 16 of the Madrid Masters 1000 after eliminating Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild this Sunday in two sets, 6-3 and 6-3, leaving behind his problems in his right forearm. that made him miss Monte Carlo and Barcelona.
“Thiago hit the ball very hard and I didn’t know how his forearm was going to hold up, today was the litmus test for me, and very well, no discomfort, feeling spectacular,” Alcaraz said after the game.
“I have hit some very good forehand strokes for me, so now we are going to go up,” said the Indian Wells winner, who returned to play at Madrid’s Caja Mágica with a compression sleeve on his right arm.
The Spaniard, current double champion of the Madrid tournament, will repeat last year’s final in Madrid in the round of 16 against the German Jan-Lennard Strauff (N.24), who beat the Frenchman Ugo Humbert (N.14) 7-5, 6- 4.
“We’re going to have to give our 100 percent, I think it’s going to be a little uncomfortable game to play, but I’m going to enjoy it,” Alcaraz said.
On the clay of the Caja Mágica, Seyboth Wild, number 63 in the world, was only able to compete in the first six games of the match, where he managed to do some damage with strong forehands.
Nerve management
But with the score at 3-3, Alcaraz broke his rival’s serve to take the lead and take the next two games and the set.
Seyboth Wild, who in the previous round had defeated the Italian Lorenzo Musetti by a double 6-4, disconnected in the second set, allowing Alcaraz to take a 5-0 lead.
The Brazilian took advantage of a slight relaxation from the Spaniard to get back on the court, breaking Alcaraz’s serve in the seventh game to end up coming back to 5-3, when the winner of two Grand Slams took advantage of his service to finish the 6-3 with his first match ball.
“As I always say, closing a match is never easy, I haven’t felt those nerves on a court for a while, it took me a bit to manage them, but in the end I am very happy to give myself another chance in the next round” concluded Alcaraz.
His compatriot Alejandro Davidovich had worse luck against the Russian Andrey Rublev, who beat the Spaniard 7-6 (12/10), 6-4 in just over two hours.
Rublev, world number eight, came back from 5-0 down in the first set tie-break to end up taking the lead.
The loss of the first set took its toll on Davidovich (N.28) who, after canceling an initial break from his rival, could not carry his reaction to the end.
With the score at 4-4, Rublev broke the Spaniard’s serve again to take off towards victory.
The Russian will face the Dutch Tallon Griekspoor (N.25) in the round of 16, who this Sunday beat the world number twelve, the Danish Holger Rune, 6-4, 4-6 and 6-3.
Rybakina sigue firme
The world number four, the Kazakh Elena Rybakina, will also be in the round of 16 in Madrid, after beating the Egyptian Mayar Sherif 6-1 and 6-4.
Rybakina, winner in Stuttgart last week, had no problems winning her second match with Sherif in an hour and a half, whom she had already defeated in Cincinnati in 2022.
Rybakina will face the young Czech Sara Beljek, 18, from the qualifying phase, who beat the American Ashlyn Krueger this Sunday 6-4, 6-1 for a place in the quarterfinals of the Madrid tournament.
The young Russian Mirra Andreeva, who a year ago was the big surprise in Madrid, earned a place in the round of 16 by beating the Czech Marketa Vondrousova, world number seven, 7-5, 6-1.
Andreeva (N.43) awaits the winner of the duel between the Italian Jasmine Paolini and the French Caroline Garcia in the next round.
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– 2024-04-30 22:25:56
