“It made me feel like a 13 year old“. It is with these words that we can, first of all, frame the match. As the person concerned told them in the press conference, Carlos Alcaraz; shortly before, on the field, defeated by an amazing performance by Grigor Dimitrov. A 6-2 6-4 authentic marvel of technique and solidity that of the Bulgarian, capable – something that is not seen every day – of relegate Alcaraz to the role of extra.
Wonderful advances in return, imaginative backhand solutions, an old-fashioned forehand and an enviable solidity on serve. It is with this recipe that Dimitrov blew up the No. 1 seed, for long stretches of the match he was a mere spectator of the Bulgarian’s show. Only at 6-2, 4-1 and game to advantage, Alcaraz managed to shake himself up. From there, with his back against the wall, the Spaniard hit a forehand, letting go as much power as possible to recover the break deficit. A solution as desperate as it is effective to get back to 4-4; but still illusory for the purposes of file success. Dimitrov was in fact able to break Alcaraz’s serve again with a superb last game and thus deservedly gained access to the semi-finals.
Therefore, the organizers’ dream of having the top 4 seeded players in the semi-finals for the first time in the history of the tournament fades away. Dimitrov will find Zverev [4], while Sinner [2] will challenge Medvedev [3]. The positive note for Blake and his staff, however, is that there is certainly no need to despair. If Dimitrov remains the one of the night also in the next releases, it will be fun.
