Carlos Alcaraz kicks off Vienna campaign with win over Evans

Monday, 25 October 2021 at 18:30

Carlos Alcaraz is back to winning ways on the ATP Tour, taking down Dan Evans in straight sets at the Erste Bank Open.

Carlos Alcaraz arrived in Vienna a few days ago taking part in the brainchild of Stefanos Tsitsipas called the Red Bull Bassline event. He ended up winning that event ahead of Tsitsipas showcasing his form heading into the Erste Bank Open. Today he faced a tricky opponent in Dan Evans but the Spaniard had no issue in defeating the Brit 6-4 6-3.

The match was a very entertaining one that featured quite a bit of twists and turns. Alcaraz was playing his signature aggressive style with Evans mostly relegated to trying to send the ball back. At first, it did not work as the Spaniard took a 2-0 lead before Evans was able to pull it back to 2-2. Alcaraz once again jumped out ahead with 4-2 but again Evans found a way to get back 4-4.

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In the end, Alcaraz was able to capture the first set with 6-4 after finally wearing Evans down. It was a great result for the Spaniard as he actually faced more break points than Evans but his tremendous baseline play got him out of a few of those. The 2nd set was played much better by both players. Alcaraz was able to settle down on his serve.

He did not go for outrageous winners like earlier and it showed in improved play on his serve. Evans actually had the 2-0 lead early but Alcaraz pulled it back to 3-3 before jumping out to a 5-3 lead. He closed it out with a strong service game a 6-3 2nd set win. Evans simply had no response to the Spaniards repeated attacking his 2nd serve.

José Morgado

@josemorgado

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Carlitos Alcaraz gets another good win in 2021, beating #24 and 2020 semifinalist Dan Evans 6-4, 6-3 and reach the 2nd round in Vienna. He won the last 5 games and 16 of the last 17 (!) points. Next? Murray (again) or Hurkacz.