Following his straight-set win over Georgian number one Nikoloz Basilashvili (6-3, 7-5), Carlos Alcaraz has praised how far he has come in the last year.
Despite trailing during the first set, with the Spanish young gun falling to a 1-3 deficit in the opener, he was able to turn things around and get over the line in an impressive manner.
Coming straight off the back of claiming the ATP 500 title in Barcelona, the player from Murcia is in search of a Spanish double. Basilashvili was determined not to be a walk in the park, though, with him claiming an early lead right from the start to strike fear into Alcaraz's fans.
This did not matter for 'Carlitos' on a mission, as he made sure to need the minimum number of sets to see off the Georgian. Speaking after his victory, Alcaraz was happy with his progress over the last year.
"I think I played really well. This is a tough opponent. He plays really hard. I think that the first match in every tournament is tough, but I was focused from the beginning to the end and I'm really happy to get into the next round."
Looking back on his last appearance in the Spanish capital, the youngster praised how far he has come in such a short period of time.
"I think I'm more mature now. One year is not too much time to get mature but I think I'm a different player, a different person now. I manage the nerves better that before and I think now I'm ready to play these kinds of matches in these kinds of stadiums in front of a lot of people. I'm feeling comfortable in these types [of matches]."
Following a win on the clay in Barcelona, all the tennis world's eyes are firmly on the 19-year-old. He is certainly showing promising early signs, but only time will tell if he can live up to the hype.
Unfortunately for the man from Murcia, any results at Europe's best clay tournaments will be immediately compared to those of a certain other Spaniard.
A decisive week lies ahead for Alcaraz, with him wanting to make it a birthday-week to remember and add another ATP Masters 1000 trophy to his cabinet to accompany his recent one in Miami.
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