It is beginning to cease to be news that Carlos Alcaraz wins a top-50 on the ATP circuit, although it is still worth noting because he is an 18-year-old boy who takes his first steps among the elite and they are giant. The Murcian could this time, en el Erste Bank Open the Viena, with Daniel Evans, 31st and 24th Briton in the world, champion this year in one of the Melbourne tournaments. Overpowered him by 6-4 and 6-3 in 85 minutes with the poise of a veteran and will face on Wednesday in the second round again another subject of Great Britain, Andy Murray. The Scotsman, who dismounted the Spanish in the first round of Indian Wells a few days ago, eliminated the Polish Hubert Hurkacz (6-4, 6-7 (6) and 6-3). “This time I will know where to shoot,” Alcaraz said at a press conference.
Charly was little concerned that Evans, fierce and competitive, thwarted the Umag champion’s escape attempts on two occasions, with three breaks that were successively answered by those he had made before. The third was the final one and thus put a victory that came on the fast track, despite the fact that Dan took the lead in the second heat (3-1). But from there, Alcaraz passed him with a 5-0 run. The boy added 20 winning strokes and 14 unforced errors, he subtracted wonderfully and only failed his serve, because in the net he was used with a surgeon’s pulse. He came from generating excitement with his victory against Tsitsipas in the final of an exhibition organized by Red Bull at the Wiener Stadhalle in the Austrian capital and did not disappoint in his official presentation in the ATP 500. Now, let the next one happen.
Carreño crashes before a fit Basilashvili
Pablo Carreño couldn’t get past the first round. He had to deal with a player who is in great form on Monday: Nikoloz Basilashvili. The 29-year-old Georgian and 25th in the world, who comes from playing and losing to Cameron Norrie in the Indian Wells final, won by 7-5, 4-6 and 6-3 in 2h31 and will face Alexei Popyrin or Matteo Berrettini in the second round.
Carreño was not successful with the break points. In the first set he missed five, in the second four and in the third one. Enough to go in tow for most of a match in which Basilashvili was better overall, although the statistics say that the equality was absolute, as they both added 28 winners and 32 unforced errors. It was their second match after they had on the Hamburg arena in 2018 and in which Nikoloz also won. Carreño, who has reached at least the quarterfinals in eight tournaments this year, will struggle to stay in the top-20 for the second year in a row.
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