Paris — Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz deftly handled a dangerous opponent at the French Open when he defeated unseeded Hungarian Fabian Marozsan 6-1 4-6 6-1 6-2 to charge into the third round on Wednesday.
Spaniard Alcaraz was toppled by Marozsan on the clay courts of Rome two years ago and had moments of vulnerability on Court Philippe-Chatrier but the 22-year-old ensured there would be no unwanted encore ending his bid for a fifth Grand Slam title.
“It was a great match. I started playing well. In the first set, I had really high confidence. In the second set, he started to play much better and he was really aggressive,” Alcaraz said.
“He didn't miss at all so it was a little difficult to deal with his game in the second set but I'm really happy I stayed strong and refreshed myself.
“In the third set, I started to play better which helped me have a really good last two sets. I just want to show good tennis. I want to make sure people are happy watching my match as well. That's the way I enjoy playing tennis.”
Playing beneath the centre court roof on a soggy Parisian afternoon, Alcaraz rained blows upon his 56th-ranked opponent to go ahead 4-0 and easily claimed the opening set despite stepping off the gas.
Marozsan dug deeper into his bag of tricks and found some exquisite drop shots that nearly earned him a double break in the second set before the 25-year-old confirmed the shift in momentum by levelling the contest.
Alcaraz cranked up the intensity of his muscular ballet on the red dirt and took control of the match by winning the third set but his electric tennis became erratic again in the fourth as he traded breaks with Marozsan.
He got his nose in front again, however, and strangled the hopes of Marozsan with a sliding volley around the net en route to a 5-2 lead before prevailing to set up a clash with either Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard or Damir Džumhur.
Italian Lorenzo Musetti continued his renaissance when he eased into the third round with a no-nonsense 6-4 6-0 6-4 victory against Colombian lucky loser Daniel Galan.
The eighth-seeded Musetti’s main trouble was intermittent rain on court Simonne-Mathieu as he set up a meeting with Argentine Mariano Navone or Reilly Opelka of the US.
“It was a solid performance from the beginning until the end. I had some ups and downs during the first and the third set. Definitely I cannot complain about the level that I'm showing,” Musetti said.
“The conditions today were not easy but I managed to find a way to show my tennis and my game. I think we made a great, great match.”
Norway’s Casper Ruud, the French Open runner-up in 2022 and 2023, crashed out of the tournament on Wednesday after losing 2-6 6-4 6-1 6-0 to the unseeded Nuno Borges of Portugal.
Ruud, a clay court specialist, said he had been nursing a minor injury in his left knee for some weeks that had carried throughout the clay season and restricted his movements against Borges.
“Hopefully it is nothing too serious but for the last couple of weeks I've been struggling with knee pain,” Ruud said.
Reuters
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.