Alcaraz is fighting against everything in Turin. Against his cold body, which prevents him from breathing comfortably, against the difficulty generated by having lost the first match without winning and without margin for error and against a rival, Rublev, in need of victory – after having lost against Zverev – which helps accelerate your chances of qualifying for the semi-finals. He is denied by the Spaniard who beats him (6-3, 7-6) and hangs on to the ATP Finals.
Carlos appears at the Inalpi Arena wearing a nasal patch with a traveling companion. The very one that allowed him to train relatively normally hours before the match. There was some uncertainty over his presence in the match after withdrawing from the training ground just 24 hours before the duel. Still, an 80% version of Alcaraz is enough to fight against Rublev, one of the eight best rackets of the season.
On the court, Alcaraz quickly rediscovered his tennis. After a few matches in which both provide their service. He starts to be aggressive, going to the net, moving Rublev… He doesn’t break his serve, but the Russian has to climb a steep slope to avoid it. “Let’s go,” shouted the Murcian after sealing a match. A cry of return, in which he finally feels in harmony with the racket after a few days of stopping, due to his tennis and the cold.
Rublev is starting to break down, his trainer Fernando Vicente already predicted it. “He’s hit in the head.” An avalanche comes to the Russian in the form of rights for which he has no network. One of them deepens and amplifies the crack. Break for Alcaraz and loss of courage for Rublev. He screams, swears and sends the ball to the roof of the Inalpi Arena when the Murcian consolidates the break thanks to his serve and marks the first set with another break of the serve.
The Murcian takes the initiative. We love it. At this point in the match, he has already entered into union with the court and his tennis. The drop shots follow one another, with a few winning shots that share a common denominator, solidity in the serve. In the second set, he increased his percentage of points won with the first serve to 88%. A partial 14 out of 16. Everything takes place with a slightly problematic fluidity, because the cold is there.
This requires you to kneel between points to recover as much as possible before a new challenge. Rublev notices it, but I can’t find the way. He looks for long exchanges, he indulges in everything, but sometimes everything is too much for him. He finds himself face to face with Alcaraz and himself. It’s not enough for him to break a game, although he also doesn’t disconnect enough to let go of his serve.
Both remain in service to reach a tie-break – the first of this edition – in which Alcaraz offers more determination. He looks at his bench and nods, he arrived optimally at sudden death. He smells blood and buries his rival with his right hand. Thus, he maintains his chances of reaching the semi-finals of a tournament that started askew, like last year, but which he turned around by beating Rublev, like last year.
The afternoon has barely begun and techno is roaring in an Inalpi Arena illuminated by lights like a discotheque. There is no beam of natural light. The tournament is presented as a Hollywood production. The end of the match also creates a Hollywood setting.
