First complicated match of Carlos Alcaraz at Wimbledon 2024 against Frances Tiafoe who tried in every way to overcome him, but did not get the result he wanted and deserved for his incredible game, and that started in an extraordinary way and put the Murcian more tense than usual and against the ropes.
Thus, a long-suffering victory for the world number 3 and reigning winner of the third Grand Slam of the year in a marathon duel that was decided in five sets (5-7/6-2/4-6/7-6/6-2).
Opening set
The American came out with a lot of desire to the Central of the All England Club and made things difficult for the Murcian in the first set. He had a break ball in favor with a tie at two, then Carlitos managed to break but the American reacted and got a counterbreak taking advantage of a couple of failures of his rival.
He was not comfortable in a first set in which Tiafoe managed to let him play his game from the back of the court. With 4-4 on the scoreboard the Murcian had to save several break balls. At 5-5 the dynamic continued in the same way and the break came. The player from Maryland was much more comfortable on the court and closed the set with a white game (7-5).
Impressive as Tiafoe was subtracting Tiafoe to the line serves of more than 200 km / h of Alcaraz. In the beginning of the second set, Carlos at least stopped conceding break balls and with a couple of lobs he returned to get at least one equal to the rest and got out of the absolute comfort zone that his rival had until that moment.
Thus, in the next game to the rest he squeezed his rival and managed to break his serve again. He was 4-2 up in the second set. This time, and not like in the first set, Alcaraz kept his concentration on serve and was just one game away from tying the match (5-2).
THIRD IMPROPER SET BY CARLOS ALCARAZ.
In the beginning of the third set Frances Tiafoe continued trying to hurt his opponent and had two break balls in the opening game. Carlitos suffered a lot to start a new set ahead on the scoreboard. The American was playing a great match;
With 3-2 up, Alcaraz made several errors to the rest that prevented him from breaking his opponent's serve for the first time at that point in each of the sets. It was the first time we saw a gesture of frustration in Alcaraz.
That desperation continued in the next game. Alcaraz made several unforced errors that the American took advantage of to break serve and go 4-3 up and serve in his favor. Tremendous.
Carlitos tried to squeeze Tiafoe in the next game, but the American defended with his best weapon, his serve, and was one game away from winning the third set. In the final game, the Spaniard again had options, but failed again and Tiafoe was 2-1 up. The Spaniard, against the ropes.
BEGINNING OF CARLITOS COMEBACK.
Alcaraz tried to forget about his problems in the first sets and won his serve flawlessly. at the beginning of the fourth set. Tiafoe's counter-response was genius, with a perfect game making things very clear to the world number 3: if you want to beat me, raise the level, I'm not going to lower it.
Thus, the fourth set developed with a little more equality and arrived with 3-3 on the scoreboard with Alcaraz trying to calm the spirits;
Tiafoe continued exhibiting a great level and managed to tie the fourth set at five. Maximum tension for Alcaraz who still could not show his best game, the game that had made him champion the previous year.
Alcaraz did not fail with his serve at a key moment and secured the tie break. Thus, the duel went to sudden death, in which the Murcian got two mini-breaks at the start to get 3-0 up. Thus, the most confident Carlitos of the match closed the fourth set by a clear 7-2. We were going to the fifth set.
After playing almost perfectly up to that point, the American fell apart at the start of the fifth set against an Alcaraz who had regained his lost confidence and managed to close the match in five sets after much suffering (more than he should have).
Samuel GillEditor-in-Chief
Samuel Gill is the Chief Content Officer (CCO) of TennisUpToDate.com, a role he has held since 2020. He is responsible for editorial governance across the platform, including setting content standards, overseeing accuracy and consistency, and guiding long-term editorial strategy. Since joining, he has contributed more than 10,000 articles and editorial pieces across the TennisUpToDate network, playing a central role in the daily operation and development of the site.
Based in Leicester, Samuel has a broad background in tennis media. In his current role, he works closely with editors and writers to ensure coverage meets clear journalistic standards, with particular attention to verification, consistency, and timely updates when new information becomes available.
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