Wednesday, August 28, 2024, 07:28
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Losing a set, Murcia native Carlos Alcaraz overcame a difficult opening game at the US Open on Tuesday night against Australian Li Tu, number 186 in the ATP. The tennis player, who is chasing a third consecutive Grand Slam title, left mixed feelings in a match that he ended up winning 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 and 6-1 on the centre court of Flushing Meadows (New York).
On the one hand, the player from El Palmar appeared to have recovered from the sprained right ankle he suffered during a weekend practice session, but on the other hand he seemed to still be mentally affected by his painful defeats in recent weeks, especially at the Paris Olympic Games.
The daring Li Tu, who came from the qualifiers, was able to maintain his level of speed and power for long stretches of the match, taking advantage of a short circuit by Alcaraz in the service that cost him the second set.
“Obviously (Tu) surprised me a bit,” admitted Alcaraz in an interview on court by Australian tennis player Nick Kyrgios, who recalled that Tu, 28, spent six of them away from tennis. “At first he didn’t play good tennis because of nerves but in the second set he started to play well and enjoy himself,” said the Murcia native. “I’m going to follow his results from now on because playing at this level I’m sure we’ll see him around here very often.”
The tennis player from Murcia also acknowledged that he needs to improve his concentration problems: “I have already said many times that I have to improve the issue of disconnections. In the second set I made many mistakes that were not appropriate. From two unforced errors in the first set I went to 18 in the second. It is a big change and that is why it got away from me.”
The debut in New York was going as smoothly as expected until, with the first set in his pocket and a 4-3 lead in the second, he got tangled up in a succession of double faults that allowed Tu to equal the score. The Australian then enjoyed his best moments, displaying a speed on a par with Alcaraz and a high level of accuracy in his strokes. Tu allowed himself frivolities such as a failed attempt at an underhand serve and also challenging the Spaniard’s second serve by waiting for him on the line.
Alcaraz reconnected in time and, after breaking Lin to go ahead 5-3 in the third set, he strung together a total of eight games in a row to seal his 60th win in his 70 Grand Slam matches.
His opponent in the second round will be Botic van De Zandschulp
The 21-year-old jewel from El Palmar has won 15 matches in a row at major tournaments and is hoping to close the year by winning his second US Open crown after 2022, when he became the youngest ATP number one. If he does so, Alcaraz will be the third player in the modern era to chain Roland Garros, Wimbledon and US Open titles in the same year, after Rod Laver (1969) and Rafael Nadal (2010).
Alcaraz’s opponent in the second round, where Novak Djokovic and Jannik Sinner are already seeded, will be Dutchman Botic van De Zandschulp, number 74 in the ATP rankings. A year after his semi-final defeat to Daniil Medvedev, Alcaraz returned to the world’s biggest tennis court eager to recapture the magic of New York nights, where he is a fan favourite.
Since his spectacular triumphs at Roland Garros and Wimbledon, the Spaniard has experienced intense disappointments, especially at the Paris Games, where he fell short of the medals in the doubles he formed with his idol Rafael Nadal and missed out on the singles gold in the final against Djokovic. After the Olympic journey, Alcaraz was ousted in his debut at the Cincinnati Masters 1000 and for the first time he was seen smashing a racket on the court in rage.
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