Carlos Alcaraz is there. His right forearm is protected by a leg warmer, but his tennis seems free. And powerful as usual. In his debut in Madrid the Murcian, winner of the last two editions of the tournament, quickly and without problems disposed of the Russian now Kazakh Alexander Shevchenko: 6-2, 6-1 in 68 minutes, 4 more than what Nadal was served yesterday to get rid of Blanch.
THE RETURN
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Alcaraz had been out of action since March 29, when he lost in the quarterfinals in Miami to Dimitrov. The problems with his arm had forced him to give up first in Monte Carlo and then in the Godó in Barcelona, which he had won in 2022 and 2023, like here in Madrid. Alcaraz hadn’t played on clay since February 17th when in Buenos Aires he lost to the Chilean Jarry in the semi-final.
EXCELLENT ANSWERS
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“It was a tough period for me, full of uncertainties, I wasn’t sure I could play here – said Carlos at the end of the match -. Today the priority was to see how I was doing and the responses were excellent. I came without rhythm and I’m super happy. I repeat, excellent sensations and continue like this. I can improve with my forehand, my backhand was good. The important thing is to find the competitive rhythm again.”
22 WINS
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Meanwhile, the winning streak on Spanish soil of Carlitos, defending champion in Barcelona and Madrid, extends to 22 matches. Now it’s up to the Brazilian Thiago Seyboth Wild, who today beat Musetti 2-0: “A complicated opponent” said Alcaraz.
NEGATIVE SERIES
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For Shevchenko, number 59 in the ranking, the bad moment continues. The Kazakh who challenged Sinner a year ago has lost 9 of the last 12 matches and today he didn’t really put up any resistance. Alcaraz did what he wanted from the first exchanges, disposing of his opponent as he pleased. The audience at the Manolo Santana appreciated it, even cheering.
READY TO FIGHT
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Alcaraz warmed up the central with a couple of miraculous recoveries, and then winning backhands, a good game at the net and just a few too many errors caused by overconfidence. There was no match today, Sunday could be different, but it is clear that Alcaraz, who had said that he would be satisfied with 3-4 matches here, wants to fight with Sinner for the number 2, with a view to the number 1 .
