Buenos Aires surrendered at the feet of Carlos Alcarazhe young wonder of world tennis, which at the close of a Wednesday full of emotions, had its absolute debut on the brick dust of the Argentina Open. The Spaniard, number two in the world and top favorite of the tournament, beat the Serbian 6-2, 4-6 and 6-2 Laszlo Djere57th in the ranking and entered the quarterfinals of the contest, where he will collide with Dusan Lajovic. And, although he suffered a little more than expected against an opponent that went from less to more, he delighted the Argentine fans with his extraordinary talent and his powerful game.
Once his victory was consummated, he even opened up about what he liked most about his days in Buenos Aires. “I think that the roast, the meat, is spectacular”launched the Spaniard with a mocking laugh.
The expectation of seeing Carlitos – who was training before noon on the central court, when the club had not yet opened its doors to the public – had been in the air since early morning and grew with the passing of the hours. Especially since 6:00 p.m., when the night session public was allowed to enter the premises.
At that moment, in the Court Guillermo Vilas, Facundo Diaz Acosta y Cameron Norrie, they continued to battle without giving away anything in the second duel of the day. And people had to arm themselves with patience.
By the time Norrie sealed his victory, crowds had filled the tables, food halls and space in front of the giant screen. And the last people in a queue of more than a block that for hours never seemed to shrink. The line to enter the stadium also seemed eternal, which meandered through the club and began to move just before 8:00 p.m.
After the clash between Camillo Ugo and the serbian Dusan Lajovic, which was a good appetizer for the main course, the long-awaited moment finally arrived and not a single seat was left in the stadium. Neither Gabriela Sabatini y Daniel Orsanic they wanted to miss the opportunity to see one of the best players in the world in action.
Djere, the first to appear on stage, was greeted by a good wave of applause, which, likewise, had no comparison with the ovation that erupted when the name of the Spaniard was heard from the loudspeakers. The entire stadium stood up and gave him, with great enthusiasm, the first standing ovation of the night.
Alcaraz had not played since the beginning of November (he got off Australia due to an injury to his right leg) and couldn’t hide his anxiety about competing again. He quickly dropped his bag on the bench and jumped to center court. And while he waited for his rival to finish settling in for the draw, he rehearsed a few blows, ran from one side to the other and hit several jumps, with an intensity that reminded that of a certain Rafa Nadal.
As the clock read almost 10:10 p.m., Djere hit the first serve of the match and got the action going. And the Spaniard did not take long to show the people what he had come to see. He began to display a range of unstoppable serves, powerful forehands, setbacks that escaped his rival’s racket and even some lobs and drops that revealed his quality.
Each display of talent by the Murcian made the audience explode and generated an ovation, which seemed insurmountable… until Carlitos displayed a little more of his magic and provoked a greater reaction. And between genius and genius, Alcaraz took the first set in just 29 minutes with great comfort.
At the break, Djere – who had sought medical attention after the fifth game – went to the locker room. And Carlitos did not last long in the bank. He immediately went to the back of the field and began to move so as not to lose heat. And he delighted everyone when he played a few “little games” with the racket that did not go unnoticed. He “Olé, ole, ole, ole, Carlooos… Carlooos”came down from the stands and he returned the love with a big smile.
The fans had waited so long for Alcaraz that they even cheered for Djere when the Spaniard had the chance to break and lead 3-2 in the second set. Nobody wanted the show to end.
And the Serbian gave them the pleasure: he raised the level, began to return with great confidence and took advantage of a downturn from Murcia -who was somewhat unfocused, even had an argument with the umpire over a serve from his rival that he assured had been bad- to break in the tenth game, win the set and stretch the story.
Carlitos, the same, did not give rise to surprises. He came out with everything to play the last set and masterfully defeated a Djere who, at times, seemed deflated.
“It has been a long time without competing. Having my first match in Buenos Aires has been super special, with the love I received from everyone”, the Spaniard closed, and earned the last ovation of an unforgettable night.
Etcheverry, the first Argentine in the quarterfinals
In the run-up to the top favorite’s debut, there were several emotionally charged duels, especially for national tennis.
Thomas Etcheverry82nd in the world, went from lowest to highest to achieve a very important victory against the Spanish Roberto Carballes Baena76th, and become the first classified to the quarterfinals.
After losing the first set 6-4, they reacted with great ease and, with sheer power, they overwhelmed the next two 6-1 and 6-2. Thus, after two and a half hours of play, she secured a place in the top eight of an ATP tournament for the first time in her career.
“Without a doubt, it was a super special match. In the second and third sets I had a very high level, it had been a long time since I played like this. Being able to do it in front of my family has an extra seasoning”, expressed the La Plata, fanatic gymnastics fan.
“As you play at the higher levels you have to be more aggressive. This year I proposed a change in that sense. It’s the way to go and I know it will take time, but I’m trying,” she revealed.
And he celebrated the great atmosphere that existed in the stadium: “There was a good atmosphere, it was a very nice experience and I enjoyed it a lot, it gave me a lot of energy. One of my dreams is to play the Davis Cup and I would like to be in the Argentine team without a doubt”.
The last shift of the daytime session gave away a great match. Because Facundo Diaz Acosta191st in the ranking, a guest of the organization and who had just achieved his first ATP victory in his debut (in two sets against Federico Coria), stood even against Cameron Norrie12th in the world, and fought him for almost three hours.
The champion of the Buenos Aires 2018 Youth Olympic Games played at a high level and made the Briton work, who suffered much more than expected to win 4-6, 7-5 and 7-6 (8-6) and get into the quarterfinals. In that instance he will collide with Etcheverry.
In the preview of the Alcaraz match, Camillo Ugo could not with the Serbian Dusan Lajovicwho beat him 6-3 and 6-1 in just one hour and 40 minutes.
The Argentine, ranked 127th, delivered his serve in the first game of the match, although he later raised the level a lot and had his chances in the first set. The key was the eighth game, in which, with the European on serve, Ugo had two break chances to discount and get 4-4; but he could not take advantage of them.
Lajovic saved break points, went ahead 5-3 and then broke again to take the set. And in the second, the Serbian, 90th in the ATP, dominated Ugo at will, who could not take advantage of the breath of an almost full stadium and was left wanting to add his second ATP victory.
The bad news, meanwhile, occurred outside the court with the abandonment of Marcel Granollers due to injury, which left the tournament without the best doubles pair, which included the Spaniard with the Argentine Horacio Zeballos. Thus, Jaume Munar and Pedro Martínez went to the next round by WO.