Carlos
Alcaraz bid farewell to the
ATP Finals after losing to Alexander Zverev,
visibly frustrated during the match. The 4-time Grand Slam champion threw his
racket forcefully after losing the first set. The German secured first place in the group and will face Taylor Fritz in the semifinals, while Jannik Sinner awaits the outcome of the match between Andrey Rublev and Casper Ruud.
The
21-year-old Spaniard entered his third match still hoping to advance to the
semifinals but faced a tough challenge against the World No. 2. Alcaraz had
several break opportunities during the set but failed to capitalise, pushing
the set to a tiebreak, which Zverev won 7-6(5).
Zverev then
secured the victory with a 6-4 second set, sealing the Spaniard's elimination.
The German now leads their head-to-head 6-5 and joins Jannik Sinner and Taylor
Fritz in the semifinals, where he will face the American for a spot in the
final.
After
losing the first set, the 21-year-old walked off the court frustrated and
headed to his chair for the set break. Before reaching his seat, he showed his
anger by throwing his racket at the chair in a rare outburst for a player like
Alcaraz.
The 2-time Wimbledon champion was eliminated from the Round Robin of the ATP Finals after defeats to Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev, managing only one victory against Andrey Rublev. Alcaraz, nonetheless, finishes the year in the top 3.
Now, the
Spaniard is preparing for his final tournament of the season, the
Davis Cup
Finals next week. He will join
Rafael Nadal in his farewell tournament, where
Spain will face the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.
Alcaraz will be the lead singles player for Team Spain and, barring any last-minute changes, he is set to face Tallon Griekspoor in the second singles match on 19 November. The rest of the Spanish lineup includes Rafa Nadal, Roberto Bautista Agut, Pedro Martínez, and Marcel Granollers.