Alcaraz liquidates Carreño, wins his third title of the year and culminates a colossal Sunday

Rio, Miami, Barcelona... The Count of Godó was also captivated by the charms of Carlos Alcaraz, irresistible on a Sunday to remember, where he put on a double bill, with the ardor of a warrior ready for any fight, in the semi-final against Alex de Miñaur, and the sufficiency, a few hours later, to prevail in the final against Pablo Carreño, whom he defeated 6-3 and 6-2, in one hour and five minutes.

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A year after falling in the first round against Frances Tiafoe, Alcaraz consolidated his power on the circuit and took over from Rafael Nadal, who won his twelfth title at the Real Club de Tenis Barcelona in 2021.

With the Majorcan absent this time due to injury, the new champion responded to what was expected of him, putting an end to any doubts that his loss to Sebastian Korda in his debut in Monte Carlo and the hesitant start against the Korean Kwon in this Godó might have aroused.

Carreño started with a two-hour lead, since he only needed one hour and 39 minutes to get rid of Diego Schwartzman.

Alcaraz, it is known, had it much more difficult, to the point that he had to save two match points in his very tough confrontation with Alex de Miñaur.

The Spaniard also had the experience of neutralizing two lethal threats very close: he did it against Casper Ruud, second seeded, in the quarterfinals.

Friday was an exhausting day for him, in which he spent about six hours on the court to overcome two rounds of the tournament.

very high demand

After four consecutive games without any of them managing to score the rest, it was Alcaraz who did it in the fifth, until he took it and opened the first gap on the scoreboard.

Carreño had needed ten appearances in the tournament to reach the final.

There is revealing evidence: the Spaniard has had a magnificent tournament, leaving behind, among others, two surface specialists, such as Ruud and Schwartzman.

The demands that Alcaraz poses right now are much greater.

That is the early weight acquired by the fittest tennis player of the moment.

Only six games had passed and Carreño was already up to his neck in water.

He was bleeding from the backhand area and had to escape from five balls that would have left the rest 2-5.

The Murcian did not wait long to take the first set.

He did it two games later, with a new

His sense of superiority was remarkable.

Nobody would say that he came from a beating like the one he gave himself before De Miñaur.

He was fresh, loose, very alive, ruling the game with great solvency.

Alcaraz, who a few weeks ago devastated Roberto Bautista in Indian Wells, made it clear that he doesn't mind facing his compatriots.

Even Nadal himself suffered a lot to be able to defeat him in three sets in the Indian Wells semifinals.

Carreño tried to speed up his game a little more, take greater risks, but he couldn't find a way to stop him.

As good in defense as he is in attack, Alcaraz, who trains alongside his rival at the Juan Carlos Ferrero academy and described his opponent in the final as an older brother, showed that he doesn't make friends on the court.

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in the sixth game of the second partial it had definitive character.

Immune to fatigue, full of adolescent energy, he imprinted a homicidal rhythm and turned the final into a runway showcasing how much he is and will be capable of.

"I knew that after the beating this morning I had to go out aggressively, with things quite clear and try not to let the points drag on too long. Since I was little they have taught me that the finals are not played, but rather they are won," he told foot of the court for La 1. "It was the best game of the tournament, without a doubt," he added.

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• Carlos Alcaraz

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