It was love at first sight. Adoration and emotion. Immediate connection. Past, present and future. Carlitos Alcaraz he stepped on the brick dust of the emblematic central court of the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club and fell in love. Due to two different and untimely injuries (abdominal and muscular in the right leg), the Spaniard had not competed officially for 103 days. The Buenos Aires ATP was his first season following a dream season, in which he rewrote the racket history books by becoming the youngest number one (19 years old) following winning the United States Open.
Not even the humid, sticky and mosquito-filled night overshadowed the tennis celebration that took place at the end of the third day of the Argentina Open. As the first seed, Carlitos made his direct debut in the round of 16 and beat -with authority- the Serbian Laslo Djere (57th) 6-2, 4-6 and 6-2, in two hours. This Friday, in the quarterfinals, another rival from the same Balkan region will await him: Dusan Lajovic (90th), who defeated the Argentine Camilo Ugo Carabelli (127th) 6-3, 6-1.
Since he arrived in the country last Friday, the wonder boy born in El Palmar, a town of 24,000 inhabitants in Murcia, in the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula, has generated extraordinary fervor, only comparable to the greats, like when Rafael Nadal played the tournament. Warm, attentive, friendly, the current number two in the world (following twenty weeks he lost the top when Novak Djokovic established himself in the last Australian Open) rose as the great attraction of the 23rd edition of the Buenos Aires ATP 250 category. His visit is a guaranteed success and had an impact on the box office: night tickets are sold out until the final on Sunday.
After almost four months without competing on the tour (he lost what would have been his first Masters tournament and might not wear number one in Melbourne, in the Grand Slam aussie), logically his task generated some uncertainty. The little that had been observed, in mid-December, following the first injury and before damaging his right leg that distanced him from Oceania, had been an exhibition in Abu Dhabi in which he had been far from his level. But the night of the BALTC, with the approximately five thousand seats occupied (Gabriela Sabatini, a distinguished spectator), showed a much more familiar version in view last year. When the clock struck 22 in Argentina, 2 in the morning in Madrid, Alcaraz (dressed in a pink shirt and white shorts), entered the central court with the classic Rocky song (Eye of the tiger, from Survivor). The public’s reaction was instinctive: an ovation poured out from every corner of the Palermo Cathedral.
Agile, offensive, risky, exchanging boxer blows with artistic brushstrokes, Alcaraz set the pace of the challenge for Djere from the start. He broke the Serb’s serve in the third game (2-1) and also in the seventh (5-2). Just 29 minutes into the game, the Spaniard took over the first quarter 6-2, with almost no obstacles. When Djere perked up a bit, Alcaraz displayed his amazing counterattack ability, leaving him immobile and dazed. Carlitos’ drops and right hands to the run constantly caused astonishment in the spectators, who in some passages sang “Olé olé olé, Carlos Carlos…”.
After the first set, Djere (27th in 2019) left the stadium for a few minutes to go to the bathroom. A DJ (one of the additions of the show this year, along with a giant screen) took advantage of the break and encouraged the public. Alcaraz, prepared for the second set, left his side to wait for his rival to return and had fun jumping and doing acrobatics with the racket (celebrated by the people). Back in action, the second quarter began with greater parity. In the fifth game, with Djere serving at 2-2, Carlitos had two break chances, but was unable to take advantage of them.
Wasting that chance seemed to turn Alcaraz off. He made a mistake trying to win all the points in a showy way, without taking his foot off the gas. In the eighth game, the Murcian scored 3-4 and 0-40. But a forehand winner, a very good serve and a missed ball by Djere alleviated him. He held up his serve with some drama (4-4). Emboldened, Carlitos came out propelled to try to break Djere’s serve in the ninth game and generated two break-points, but failed once more and even had an exchange with the umpire (Ecuadorian Jimmy Pinoargote) for a dubious pike. Djere raised the level, perfected his return and, with Alcaraz serving, had a triple set-point. An unattainable parallel setback for the Spaniard was the lunge to win the second set (6-4).
If anyone feared that Alcaraz might be demoralized following losing the second set, doubts were soon dispelled. The boy who revolutionizes the tour began the third set by breaking Djere’s serve and immediately held his own with authority (2-0). Djere was not intimidated and turned on the “stick and stick”, but generally the exchange of blows ended with the same winner (Alcaraz). Carlitos broke the Balkan’s serve once more in the seventh game (5-2) and, following the break, he sealed the victory with his serve.
“It has been a long time for me, I am not used to spending so much time without competing. It’s good to have had my first game of the season in Buenos Aires. I have received a very special affection since I arrived (…) I have a good time on the field, I want the public to have a good time too and that is what I try to give”, Alcaraz expressed at the foot of the court, not well concretized the victory.
Alcaraz joined the prestigious list of players who played in the Buenos Aires ATP and who, before or following the visit to Palermo, reached number one, such as the Chilean Marcelo Ríos, the Brazilian Guga Kuerten and the Spanish Rafael Nadal, Carlos Moya and Juan Carlos Ferrero, current coach of Carlitos.
Alcaraz did not come alone: he is accompanied by his father (Carlos) and his older brother (Álvaro), also by a manager (Albert Molina, who had visited the country several times as an agent for David Ferrer and Nicolás Almagro), his physiotherapist (Juanjo Moreno ) and Toni Cascales, the emblematic coach of Mosquito Ferrero (Carlitos’ main coach, who did not travel to Buenos Aires). After his time in Argentina, he will continue on the South American tour on clay, at the ATP 500 in Rio.
Schedule for this Thursday:
Starting at 1:30 p.m., matches will be played for the 8th final, with Dominic Thiem (Austria, WC) vs. Juan Pablo Varillas (Peru, Q). Not before 3:00 p.m., Jaume Munar (Spain) vs. Francisco Cerúndolo (5th favourite). Not before 6:30 p.m., Pedro Cachin vs. Lorenzo Musetti (Italy, 3rd). And closing the day, not before 8:00 p.m., Diego Schwartzman (4th) vs. Bernabe Zapata Miralles (Spain).
