Carlos Alcaraz Records His First-Ever Monte-Carlo Masters Win Despite Slow Start
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Although it seems almost unbelievable, Carlos Alcaraz recorded his first win at the Monte-Carlo Masters just this year.
Alcaraz is already a four-time Grand Slam champion and a five-time ATP Masters 1000 champion. However, he had never won a match at the Monte-Carlo Masters before this year.
It wasn't because of his bad performances in Monaco. In fact, he only competed at the event once before, back in 2022 when he lost to Sebastian Korda in the second round of the tournament (after having a first-round bye).
This year, the young Spaniard appeared at the Monte-Carlo Masters for the second time in his career, and ahead of the tournament, he did his best to deflect any expectations.
He had a reason to do that, as his first opponent was Francisco Cerundolo, who is a very talented clay-court player, and he was also the third highest-ranked unseeded player in the draw.
Early in the match, Cerundolo also proved why Alcaraz had every reason to be worried about the result. Although the Argentinian fell behind by a break, he quickly recovered and, from 1-2 down, he made it to 5-2.
Cerundolo then held his serve, as did his opponent, but the Argentinian's one-break advantage was enough to win the opening set of the match 6-3.
Alcaraz needed a response, and he needed it fast. But early in the second set, he was under even more pressure, facing two break points in the opening game of the set.
But the former ATP World No. 1 player found a way out of this trouble. He then broke Cerundolo's serve to lead 2-0, and after saving two more break points, the 21-year-old Spaniard was already up 3-0.
That momentum shift clearly helped Alcaraz, who continued playing exceptionally. He won the second set of the match easily 6-0, forcing a decider.
Boosted by an impressive scoreline from the second set, Alcaraz felt confident in the third set, and it showed. He didn't face a single break point and after breaking Cerundolo's serve twice, the Spaniard won the match 3-6, 6-0, 6-1, recording his first-ever win at the Monte-Carlo Masters. Alcaraz will now prepare for his third-round match against Daniel Altmaier.
It was clear he was happy to return to the red dirt after the match, signing the camera with a message that shared his excitement. After the match, he also said that he would probably put clay as his favorite surface at the moment.
"I don’t know. I always say that probably, until now, I always put it second. I prefer to play on hard court. Right now, I don’t know. I think I’m gonna put it first. I just missed the clay season. I haven’t played on clay since the Olympics. I love this part of the year. I love watching the matches here on clay. I love playing here on clay. I grew up playing on this surface. I’m gonna put it as number one."
