Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev win their opening matches at the ATP Finals in Turin, with both players securing straight-set victories
TURIN: Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev made winning starts at the ATP Finals on Sunday.
World number two Alcaraz defeated Alex de Minaur 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 for his first opening match victory at the season-ending tournament.
“This tournament is one of the best tournaments we have on tour,” Alcaraz said.
The Spaniard had lost his opening matches to Zverev and Casper Ruud in the previous two editions.
Alcaraz expressed pride in maintaining motivation late in the season this year.
“I’ve been struggling in the past few years to come to the end of the year with motivation,” he said.
“This year is a little bit different, which I’m proud about (as) I’m doing the right things to give myself a shot to try and win this tournament.”
The match proved challenging despite the straight-set scoreline.
Alcaraz led 4-1 in the first set before experiencing a sudden dip in form.
He struggled with his first serves, allowing seventh seed De Minaur to level the score.
Trailing 3-1 and then 5-3 in the tiebreak, Alcaraz recovered to win the first set.
The second set was more straightforward despite an early service break.
Alcaraz claimed his fifth consecutive victory over the Australian.
“It was a really difficult match,” Alcaraz said.
“On this surface, Alex makes the most of the speed of the ball, he’s super fast and really difficult on return.”
Alcaraz and De Minaur compete in the Jimmy Connors Group alongside Taylor Fritz and Lorenzo Musetti.
Musetti replaced the injured Novak Djokovic as a late addition.
Later on Sunday, third seed Zverev defeated Ben Shelton 6-3, 7-6 (8/6).
The match opened the Bjorn Borg Group, which includes Jannik Sinner and Felix Auger-Aliassime.
Two of tennis’s biggest servers faced off in the evening session.
Zverev broke the American fifth seed twice in the opening set.
He secured the first set in under thirty minutes.
The second set featured few break opportunities and progressed to a tiebreak.
Zverev started sluggishly in the breaker, falling behind 6-3.
Shelton earned three set points at this stage.
The 2018 and 2021 champion began his comeback with a superb backhand passing shot.
Zverev sealed match point on his first opportunity as Shelton hit long after a lengthy rally. – AFP
