Carlos Alcaraz is into the third round of the 2024 Australian Open after beating Lorenzo Sonego in four close sets.
The two players have met already once on the ATP Tour, and back then, it was a win for the Italian, so it was expected that their second-round clash in Melbourne would be close, and it was.
The Spaniard was coming into the match after a simple straight-sets win over Richard Gasquet, while Sonego overcame Daniel Evans in a four-set match to set up the meeting with the second seed in Australia.
Alcaraz wanted to get the match over the finish line as soon as possible, and in the opening set, he played like it. The 20-year-old was better in everything that mattered, and he played just a super solid set of tennis, winning it 6-4.
But in the second set came a real challenge from his opponent. Both players hold onto their serves easily, and so the second set had to be decided in a tie-break, and Sonego was the better player in that one, winning it 7-3.
However, in the third set, Alcaraz increased his level once again, breaking early and losing only two points on his serve afterwards to win the third set 6-3 and establish the lead in the match once again.
In the fourth set of the match, the second seed started with an early break again, but this time around, the Italian broke immediately back, and after another flawless serving performance from both, the fourth set had to be decided in a tie-break.
But this time around, Alcaraz prevailed, winning the tie-break 7-3 to win the match 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-3, 7-6(3) to reach the third round of the 2024 Australian Open, where he'll await the winner of the match between Sumit Nagal and Juncheng Shang.
Carlos Alcaraz vs Lorenzo Sonego Match Stats:
| Carlos Alcaraz | Lorenzo Sonego | |
|---|---|---|
| 12 | Aces | 10 |
| 4 | Double Faults | 2 |
| 69% | First Serve % | 73% |
| 78% (70/90) | Points Won After First Serve % | 65% (67/103) |
| 71% (29/41) | Points Won After Second Serve % | 67% (26/39) |
| 50% (3/6) | Break Point Conversion | 25% (1/4) |
| 43 | Winners | 37 |
| 34 | Unforced Errors | 48 |
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