Carlos Alcaraz defeated
Fabian Marozsan 6-3,
7-5 to advance to the quarterfinals of
Indian Wells. The Hungarian had
previously faced Alcaraz at the Rome Open 10 months ago, where Marozsan, ranked
No. 135 at the time, secured a surprising victory over the then-world No. 1
with a scoreline of 6-3, 7-6(4).
In the first set, both players had a first
serve percentage below 60%, highlighting differences in their effectiveness.
Alcaraz had a 79% first serve points won compared to Marozsan's 70%. The
contrast was even more pronounced in second-serve points, with Alcaraz at 60%
and Marozsan at a mere 31%.
Although the first six games of the match saw
no break points, in the seventh game, Alcaraz created his first opportunities,
breaking to take a 5-3 lead and then consolidating from his service to secure
the set 6-3. In the ninth game, the two-time Grand Slam champion secured his
second break to close out the set 6-3.
The second set followed a similar pattern, with
neither player making significant gains in return points during the early
games. With the score at 3-2 in favor of Alcaraz, he secured his third break of
the match to take a 4-2 lead. The world No. 2 faced challenges with two break
points against him but managed to navigate through, maintaining his advantage.
Although Marozsan managed to hold one more
service game, Alcaraz ultimately sealed the match from his serve, claiming a
significant victory with a scoreline of 6-3, 6-3.
In the
quarterfinals, he will face the winner of the match between the 10th seed Alex
De Minaur and the 6th seed
Alexander Zverev, who had previously eliminated
Alcaraz in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open two months ago.
