Carlos Alcaraz claimed his first indoor title at the Rotterdam Open on Sunday, after defeating Australia’s Alex de Minaur in the finals. The 21-year-old took advantage of the absence of world number one, Jannik Sinner. Sinner had pulled out of the tournament at the last minute following his victory at the Australian Open last month, and Alcaraz made the most of the opportunity.
Carlos Alcaraz defeated Australia’s Alex de Minaur
In the final, Alcaraz defeated Australia’s Alex de Minaur 6-4, 3-6, 6-2. When asked if he missed facing his Italian rival, Alcaraz quipped,
Not really! Now that I’m holding the trophy, I’m going to say that I didn’t miss him in the tournament.
While acknowledging it could have been an exciting contest with both him and Sinner in the same tournament, Alcaraz added,
Probably we could have played a great final.
Carlos Alcaraz overpowers Alex de Minaur in three sets
Alcaraz’s power and precision proved too much for de Minaur, who battled valiantly but was unable to match the Spaniard’s dominant performance. The world number three described the week as “really good,” despite battling a cold throughout the tournament. Alcaraz wore a nose-clip to help ease his breathing but continued to improve each day.
In the opening set, Alcaraz seized control early, breaking de Minaur’s serve in the third game with a mix of heavy groundstrokes and a double-fault from the Australian. However, de Minaur fought back, breaking Alcaraz to love in the seventh game, and the set was back on serve. Alcaraz managed to break de Minaur again, securing the first set after de Minaur’s forehand return went long.
The second set saw a shift in momentum as de Minaur took an early 3-0 lead. Despite squandering two more break chances, de Minaur held his serve and managed to level the match after Alcaraz struggled with unforced errors, including a backhand into the net.
The final set saw Alcaraz reassert his dominance, breaking de Minaur’s serve at 3-2 with a perfectly placed drop shot. With de Minaur serving to stay in the match at 5-2, a disastrous double-fault handed Alcaraz two match points. The Australian’s tired-looking backhand into the net sealed Alcaraz’s victory, marking his 17th career title.
For de Minaur, the runner-up finish was a deja vu moment, as he lost to Sinner in the final the previous year.
It’s been two years with this runner-up trophy. I’m hoping I’ll get my hand on the winners’ one day.
De Minaur, who had also been unwell, admitted, “
I’m just looking forward to getting into bed and hopefully getting some rest.