Carlos Alcaraz will take on Lloyd Harris in the second round of the 2023 US Open, and he's hoping for at least three sets.
The last time Alcaraz stood on the courts in New York was recently when he took on Dominik Koepfer. It was a short match lasting only an hour because the German rolled his ankle at the start of the match but kept playing despite not feeling good.
He eventually opted to retire, sending Alcaraz to the second round to face Harris. The South African played a full match and won it in three sets against Guido Pella. This one will go differently, as Alcaraz is one tough one to beat.
Head-to-head:
Alcaraz and Harris obviously never played before on the ATP Tour, but it promises to be a very exciting one. Harris has a powerful serve and blasted 20+ winners in the opening round. Alcaraz can serve well as well, but his strengths are basically dominating from the baseline.
In a clash of styles like that, we might see a lot of exciting rallies, though I doubt that Harris will do much outside of that. He'll have to play rallies, and Alcaraz has the edge in that regard.
Prediction:
If, by chance, Harris does outplay Alcaraz from the baseline, then he'll have all the ingredients to win the match. However, the 20-year-old Spaniard himself looked really good against Koepfer. He admitted as much, explaining that his level surprised him as well.
If he keeps producing it, then he'll cruise through the first week, with the second week likely to present more challenges. Harris is prone to overhit, and getting pushed in rallies is likely to result in an error rather than a forehand down the line, so back Alcaraz.
Prediction: Carlos Alcaraz to win in three sets.
0 Comments