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Enric Gardiner
Lunes, 13 de enero 2025, 11:35
Carlos Alcaraz did what was expected in the first round of the Australian Open. He swiftly defeated Alexander Shevchenko (6-1, 7-5, 6-1), although with a scare and a comeback in the second set, and advances cleanly to the second stage of the first Grand Slam of the season.
On a particularly tight day in Melbourne, with Alcaraz, Novak Djokovic, and Nick Kyrgios playing simultaneously, and Jannik Sinner having completed his match earlier, the Spaniard was moved to the Margaret Court, the second most important court where he had never played before. While in his debut in the tournament in 2021 he played on the outer courts - as in 2022 - in 2024 - he missed 2023 due to injury, he always played on the Rod Laver, until his elimination in the quarter-finals.
The new context and atmosphere did not affect him much, and Alcaraz started strong, losing the first game but winning the next six. He committed only six errors in the entire set, allowed just one break point, and tripled the number of winners his opponent achieved. The new changes Alcaraz has introduced in 2025, especially in his serve mechanics, are working. Shevchenko was not playing poorly, but this Alcaraz is unstoppable.
The momentum lasted for the Murcian until midway through the second set, when the scoreboard showed a commanding 6-1, 3-1. He had half the match in his pocket, but then came one of those classic lapses without which Alcaraz cannot be understood. He lost four consecutive games, multiplied his errors, and gave away his serve twice.
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The Kazakh, who in his only match against Alcaraz last year in Madrid won only three games, managed to win four in a few minutes and had the serve to level the match at one set all. But having the opportunity and seizing it are two different things. As is often the case in this mental chess that is tennis, failing to grasp glory when it's so close can precede a downfall, and that's what happened to Shevchenko.
Alcaraz, sensing his opponent's nerves, sank his teeth in and made a 12-5 run in points to turn the 3-5 into a 5-7.
There was still a set to go, yes, but Shevchenko was already mentally exhausted. He had seen the chance to challenge one of the world's best and had squandered it. Alcaraz showed him the candy and took it away, and in the third set, it was only a matter of waiting for the final blow.
The Murcian, as if racing against the clock, took only 28 minutes to seal the match. A victory that did not even last two hours and puts Alcaraz in the second round of the oceanic tournament.
There he will face Japan's Yosihito Nishioka, who defeated qualifier Aziz Dougaz in four sets. It will be the second encounter against Alcaraz after their match at the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000, where the Spaniard won with a double 6-4.
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