Top seed Carlos Alcaraz quickly adapted to the strength of Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard to perform solidly to win 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the China Open, Friday (27/9).
Alcaraz broke the Frenchman’s serve in the opening game of each set to advance to the second round of the ATP 500 in 81 minutes.
“The plan is to return as many balls as possible,” said Alcaraz as quoted by Between.
“To be honest it wasn’t easy. He served 230 or 240 (km/h) almost every serve. Second set, 210 or 215. So, it wasn’t easy to play against him.”
“He’s a very strong player. Serves hard, hits hard from the baseline. So I have to really focus. That’s the plan. Try not to make too many mistakes and play aggressively from the baseline,” said the 21-year-old tennis player.
Alcaraz converted both break points he earned in his inaugural ATP head to head match with Mpetshi Perricard.
Also read: Losing concentration, Alcaraz is eliminated in the semifinals of the China Open
Although the Frenchman finished the match having won 83 percent (20/24) of the points behind his first serves, according to ATP statistics, his attempts to win were marred by errors at the start of each set.
“In the first game of the match, I made a pretty good return and played good points from the baseline,” Alcaraz said.
“In the first game of the second set, he made three double faults, so that really helped me to break serve. After that I had to really focus for the next game, and I’m very happy I did.”
After securing a win in just his third tour-level match against younger opponents, Alcaraz improved his win-loss record to 44-9 for the season.
The Spaniard, whose qualification for the ATP Finals was confirmed earlier this week, will face Tallon Griekspoor in the second round. (Z-6)
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