BUENOS AIRES:
Carlos Alcaraz marked his return to action for the first time in nearly four months with a 6-3, 7-5 victory over Cameron Norrie in the final of the Argentina Open on Sunday.
It was a seventh career title for the 19-year-old Spaniard and first since winning the US Open in September before becoming the youngest world number one.
“I felt very happy to play in the final,” said Alcaraz.
“I knew it was going to be very difficult. I started to really focus on what I had to do in the beginning, my game, my position. This is the position I have to play in conclusion.”
A torn leg muscle at the Paris Masters in November caused Alcaraz to miss the start of this season, including the Australian Open where he won. Novak Djokovic. He also lost his superiority to the Serb.
World number two Alcaraz beat 12th-ranked Norrie 4-1 thanks to his 93-minute victory on Sunday.
He turned a quick 2-3 lead into an impressive 6-3, 3-0 lead and didn’t face a break until he couldn’t take the game to 5-3 up.
Down 0-15 while serving at 5-5, the Spaniard served his first flag to regain control.
The next game was the longest of the tournament as Alcaraz battled through two deuces before sealing the victory with a tiebreaker. Alcaraz showed his prowess on the clay courts has not diminished in the length of his absence.
Of his seven championships, five have come on clay and he will have the opportunity to quickly add another as he heads to Rio next week to defend the title he won in 2022.
Alcaraz is the first Spaniard to win the title in Buenos Aires since Rafael Nadal in 2015 and he did it in style, taking only one set of his four victories throughout the week and his first match and Serbia’s Laslo Djere.
The victory on Sunday also means that he is the first youth to receive the championship in the capital of Argentina.
Alcaraz had a breakout 2022. In addition to becoming the youngest US Open champion since Pete Sampras in 1990, he also defeated Djokovic and Nadal in back-to-back days en route. to the Madrid Masters crown.
He also won the Miami Masters and ATP 500-level trophies in Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona.
“It was a very good year. I achieved my dream, my goal, very quickly. I handled it as normal as possible,” said Alcaraz in the evening of Buenos Aires.
“When I became number one I had to set new goals, new things for the long term, to keep enjoying myself, to keep improving, because I’m still young and there’s a lot my things to improve.”
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