Carlos Alcaraz defeated Holger Rune 4-3 (8-6) 4-3 4-0 in their first head-to-head match to hold a 1-0 record in Group A at the Intesa San Paolo Next Gen ATP Finals at the Allianz Cloud in Milan.
Alcaraz joins Brandon Nakashima at the lead of Group A after the US player beat Juan Manuel Cerundolo in four sets earlier today.
The first set went on serve in the first four games before Rune saved three consecutive set points to hold serve for 3-3. Alcaraz earned three more set points at 6-4 with two mini-breaks. Rune saved the first two chances to draw level to 6-6 but Alcaraz sealed the tie-break 8-6 with another mini-break on his third set point.
Alcaraz earned his first break in the fifth game to close out the second set 4-2. The world number 32 player broke twice to cruise through to a 4-0 win in the third set with a crosscourt volley. Alcaraz won 88% of his first serve points and hit 27 winners to 16 unforced errors. The Spaniard did not face a break point.
In his breakthrough season Alcaraz clinched his first ATP Tour title and upset Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round en route to the quarter final at the US Open. He reached ATP Tour semifinals in Marbella Winston Salem and Vienna.
“It was a really tough match. The first set was so close. He had the chance to win the set and I think it was a great match. Both of us played really well. I tried stay calm. This is new for me. I was really nervous at the beginning but I tried to be calm. To do many different things on court is very important. I am trying to go to the net and play aggressively in the important moments and stay calm. I am trying to do this every match”, said Alcaraz.
World number 109 Rune won his fourth Challenger tournament of the season in Bergamo last week. The Danish player took a set off world number 1 Novak Djokovic at the US Open last September.
