the spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz scored his first victory against his idol Rafa Nadal (6-2, 1-6, 6-3) this Friday to reach the semifinals at the Mutua Madrid Open, the fourth Masters 1,000 of the season. There it will be measured this Saturday at the Caja Mágica for the first time with the Serbian Novak Djokovicnumber one in the world.
The Murcian had to knock down the king of the earth a couple of times, after a 6-2 in the first set and a complicated second set in which he twisted his right ankle. Then, there was another break due to a medical incident on the Manolo Santana track. The match went crazy, but in the third set Alcaraz’s logic returned.
Alcaraz, just turned 19 years old, was the favorite for a Nadal who accepted in the previous one that the sorpasso was a matter of time. The broken rib six weeks ago cut short the triumphant return in 2022 of the Balearic Islands, and in Madrid, with two victories and a handful of training sessions, he did not give to recover it.
The one from El Palmar, who is 26-3 so far this year, had grown into a Top 10 that will continue to drop on Monday and a dominant game with few rivals right now. After the most boisterous staging of the week, Manolo Santana did not buckle up when Nadal and Alcaraz were already sharing hard blows.
One break after another until the Murcian achieved the second and the game calmed down. Alcaraz’s ball ran more, and behind it, the Balearic. In the absence of a dominating forehand, the man from El Palmar took out his crosscourt backhand and the repertoire of drop shots to keep Nadal out of the fight. The 21 grand champion it was seen as feared at the mercy of the most refined game of the recent champion in Barcelona.
fight on the pitch
To the attack, the murciano signed a new break for 5-2 and then he showed off an equally accurate serve to seal the first set in style. He still had to finish the job Alcaraz, in the third game against his idol. In the first he destroyed the Balearic, a year ago in Madrid; in the second he cost Nadal three sets and a broken rib in Indian Wells, and the third left this symbolic generational succession, albeit with suspense.
the murcian came back from 0-40 on his first serve of the second set and he went with everything until he played his right ankle at 1-2. Juan Carlos Ferrero’s pupil received treatment on the court and a strong bandage, but he lost his comfort and Nadal did not miss it. The five-time champion in Madrid won 20 of the last 21 points of the second set to make it 1-6.
The third set brought a new match, after another long treatment break for the Murcian, and an unknown that Alcaraz was soon resolved. The three-time champion this season recovered that crosscourt backhand and dominance on the court to take the lead (3-1). Nadal was seen in tow again and, like all week, accepted that he is not with the arsenal prepared for much boasting.
Despite a certain roller coaster, the emotions and the poster, Alcaraz managed the moments, the nerves and the setbacks. The young man brought out the talent that dazzles the ATP and knocked Nadal down for the first time. the balearic he said goodbye to Madrid with resignation but time for the set-up that aims at Roland Garros.
Take out the net, a forehand out, a backhand parallel, another that fails, a dropshot that is not missing and a right parallel with Nadal. This is how the apprentice closed the triumph, with the master waiting in the middle of the track to accept defeat, although not yet the relief. the murcian will be measured in the semifinals with a Djokovic also with tweezers, very few games in 2022, which defeated (6-3, 6-4) the Polish Hubert Hurkacz.
