Carlos Alcaraz has taken a giant step towards the semifinals of the ATP Finals after a three-set victory over Taylor Fritz.
Alcaraz will go through with a game to spare should Alex de Minaur come through against Lorenzo Musetti in tonight’s round robin clash.
Fritz had praised Alcaraz coming into this match, and things started well for the American as he took the first set 7-6 after comfortably winning a tie-breaker.
Alcaraz has shared his surprise at the courts in Turin for the ATP Finals, but once he got to grips with things against Fritz, he actually came through the second two sets rather convincingly.
What Carlos Alcaraz said after beating Taylor Fritz
Clearly, Alcaraz simply loves to win games of tennis and although he’s going to play it down, he will want to end the year as the world number one.
Alcaraz has won two of the four majors this year, with Sinner winning the other two and showcasing just how dominant the two players are.
The Spaniard has some praise for Fritz and admitted what the American did that made life very difficult for him during his latest win.
On the win, Alcaraz said on the court: “Well, it was pretty tight, the match.
“I think I was running more than him, struggling more than him.
“After the first set, I was a break up, the next game, I didn’t play well. The first set, I didn’t serve well, and he was playing really comfortably from the baseline with everything.
“I was really relieved after the win, because of everything that I went through during the match, physically, I didn’t feel the ball as well as I did in the first round, but really happy that I found a way to come back, to find weaknesses from him, and really happy that I got the win in the end.”
Alcaraz’s win over Fritz means that he now needs just one win to guarantee himself as the world number one to finish the year.
That is something that quite clearly he’s proud of, and he continued: “I try not to think about it, to be honest.
“Obviously, it’s going to be a really big match for me, I will try to not let the nerves play a part in that match. I will try to control my emotions, control myself.
“I will try to think about my goals in the match, try to think about feeling much better than today, with the shots, the serve, with everything, but obviously, it’s going to be a big day.
“Right now, I’m going to enjoy this win, I’m going to try to rest as much as I can so I can be ready for the next match.”
Tim Henman delivers verdict on Carlos Alcaraz win over Taylor Fritz
Henman was covering the game for Sky Sports Tennis and it’s fair to say that he was engrossed in the match, calling it one of the best of the year so far.
Given the dominance of Sinner and Alcaraz, really entertaining matches have come in short supply, with Henman placing this match right up there in terms of Match of the Year status.
He said: “An amazing match, two of the best players in the world going head to head. Just throwing everything at it.
“From the word go, the quality, the intensity, the ball striking was just amazing, top five matches of this year, for sure. Alcaraz, we just heard him talking about his relief of finding the solutions against Fritz; he was a little bit self-critical, but I think so much of it was about the quality of Taylor Fritz.
“Every opportunity he had to pull the trigger, he just went for his shots, and Alcaraz was up against it for the vast majority of that match.”
Alcaraz will finish his round robin campaign with a match over Musetti, and given that the Italian player only got in due to Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal, he should go through to the last four with three wins out of three.
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