MADRID — In management throughout his semifinal victory on the Madrid Open on Friday, Carlos Alcaraz all of the sudden checked out a loss when he accomplished his two units in opposition to Borna Coric.
After ending off Coric 6-4, 6-3, Alcaraz was introduced by match organizers with an enormous birthday cake which was topped by an enormous tennis ball with the quantity 20.
Hands on hips, Alcaraz appeared surprised.
But, as normal, the Spanish star rose to the problem. He deftly sliced off a skinny piece of what appeared to be primarily icing to strive his cake earlier than taking a swig from his water bottle.
After the group sung “Happy Birthday” in Spanish, Alcaraz advised the packed Manolo Santana Stadium, “It truly is incredible to celebrate my birthday with all of you. Each year I celebrate my birthday here. When I turned 18, I played Rafael Nadal (in a loss), when I turned 19 I played (Cameron) Norrie (in a win), and now at 20 I advance to the final.”
The second-ranked Alcaraz will play Jan-Lennard Struff or Aslan Karatsev on Sunday.
PHOTOS: Alcaraz celebrates twentieth birthday with return to Madrid remaining
Alcaraz is aiming for his fourth title of the season after triumphs in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, and Barcelona. He can also be making ready for the French Open this month.
If Alcaraz efficiently defends his title in Madrid, he’ll get better his world No. 1 rating by enjoying one match in Rome subsequent week.
In his first matchup with Alcaraz, Coric stunned early along with his potential to counter his drop photographs, so Alcaraz modified techniques and simply battered his opponent into submission. He took a 3-2 break lead and didn’t look again.
Alcaraz has dropped just one set – the primary in his opener in opposition to Emil Ruusuvuori – on the match he received for the primary time final 12 months en path to turning into the U.S. Open and the youngest year-end No. 1 in ATP historical past.
After that comeback win over Ruusuvouri, Alcaraz made fast work of Grigor Dimitrov, Alexander Zverev and Karen Khachanov to succeed in the semifinals.
Women’s No. 1 Iga Swiatek and No. 2 Aryna Sabalenka will meet for the title on Saturday.
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