Carlos Alcaraz got his title defence underway at the Indian Wells 2024 with a three-set victory against Matteo Arnaldi a few days ago, after losing the opening set. Still only 20, he has collected four ATP 1000 titles already, in addition to his two Grand Slams. One of the best players on the tour, he always serves up incredible matches at the highest level for the crowds.
Never the one to give up easily, here are 5 instances when Alcaraz won a match in an ATP Masters tournament despite losing the first set.
1. Carlos Alcaraz bounced back spectacularly against Matteo Arnaldi at the Indian Wells 2024
Seeded second, Alcaraz received a bye into the second round of this year’s competition at Indian Wells. Arnaldi came in off a straight-sets win in the first round. The Italian kept his momentum going, winning an enthralling first set after a tiebreak.
However, Alcaraz found his feet after the initial stumble and was ruthless in the next two sets. Making only two unforced errors in the second set, he inflicted a bagel upon Matteo Arnaldi. The defending champion followed it up with a breadstick, winning nine games in a row. The match ended 6-7(5), 6-0, 6-1 in Alcaraz’s favor and he used that momentum to beat Felix Auger-Aliassime in the following round.
2. Miami Open 2022 quarter-final en route to first Masters title
Having just broken into the top 20 in March 2022, Carlos Alcaraz set up a quarter-final clash against Miomir Kecmanovic after producing a huge Stefanos Tsitsipas upset in the fourth round. It looked like the Spaniard was headed for an upset loss of his own as the unseeded Serbian won the first set.
#14 seed Alcaraz, though, recovered to comprehensively bag the second set. The young duo went toe-to-toe in the decider, neither player conceding a break point as it went to the tiebreaker. Alcaraz trailed 3-5 but fought back to ultimately win 6-7 (5), 6-3, 7-6(5). He would go on to lift the trophy, his first ATP 1000 title.
3. When Carlos Alcaraz saved a match point in the Cincinnati Open 2023 semi-finals
In the tournament most famous for its iconic final, many forget that Alcaraz played an incredible semi-final as well. Hubert Hurkacz raced into the lead after winning the first set 6-2. The Polish star carried on his good form and had a match point when leading 5-4 in the second.
Alcaraz, though, saved the point and soon forced a tiebreaker. Once again, when trailing 1-4 and staring down the barrel, he won six points on the trot to secure the set. That seemed to break Hurkacz’s belief, as he meekly surrendered in the third set. Alcaraz’s wonderful resilience and display of tennis saw him walk away with a 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 win.
4. Alcaraz’s Madrid Masters 2022 semi-final comeback win kickstarted a top rivalry
The Novak Djokovic vs Carlos Alcaraz rivalry is arguably the best on the ATP Tour right now. It all began when the latter bounced back after losing the first set in the semi-final of the Madrid Masters 2022.
Coming off a quarter-final win over Rafael Nadal, Alcaraz lost the first set after a tiebreak against top seed Djokovic despite leading 3-1. The prodigious star matched up to the World No.1 in incredible fashion, breaking him in the 12th game of the second set to tie affairs. He retrieved a drop shot before slamming a winner from outside the doubles lobby.
The decider also went all level until the tiebreaker, where Alcaraz went ahead 4-2. Despite his best efforts, Djokovic could not close the gap much. He saved two match points before the Spaniard bagged the third to win 6-7 (5), 7-5, 7-6 (5). Their jaw-dropping tennis set the tone for a duel that continues to entertain fans.
5. Carlos Alcaraz overcame a hiccup to kickstart a successful title defence
Alcaraz entered the Madrid Masters 2023 as the World No.1 and the defending champion. Additionally, the tournament did not feature any of the Big 3, hence making him a favourite to retain the trophy.
However, his journey got off to a less-than-ideal start in the second round against the unseeded Emil Ruusuvuori. The Finnish player shocked everyone by taking the first set off Alcaraz, that too in a very lopsided manner. The home favorite, though, soon found his groove. He saved five break points in the second set after it was tied 3-3 to equalise the fixture.
The decider was all one-way traffic as Alcaraz brought out his best tennis. He dished out some audacious drop shots that left Ruusuvuori scrambling. Alcaraz won 2-6, 6-4, 6-2 to survive the scare, as he went on to lift the title for the second consecutive year.
