The blue protagonist of a comeback from 0-3, then pays for the physical problems. And Carlos wins in 2 hours and 47
It was a beautiful match, the one between Carlos Alcaraz and Fabio Fognini, in the ATP 500 in Rio. The Spaniard, number two in the world and seeded number 1 in the tournament, won as predicted (6-7 (5) 6-2 6-4), flying to the quarterfinals, but the Ligurian played a symphony of tennis, we don’t know if it will be the last, proving that you could even be almost 36 years old and your ankles gone (even in this match), but if you know how to play and if the desire is kindled, there is no age that hold for flashes of stunning beauty on the pitch. Fognini turned back the hands of time, managing to snatch the first set in an incredible way in Alcaraz, in a field, that of Rio, which evokes sweet memories for him, with a final (in 2015, lost, against Ferrer) and two semifinals (the last one against Alcaraz last year), with a splendid victory against Rafael Nadal in 2015.
Comeback show
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The almost 20-year-old from Murcia (16 years of difference between the two), ready to go away 3-0 with a ball for the 4-0 with the flavor of a sentence, but after having escaped well and making it 3-1, the Fognini show. Despite a treacherous forehand more often than not, the blue has pulled off shots with a vintage flavor, especially the deadly backhand down the line, executed with such naturalness and precision that it deserves to be screened in every tennis school in the world. Alcaraz probably didn’t expect all of this and got confused. After losing his serve, the Spaniard still made it 4-2 but then gave up 3 games in a row to a wonderful Fabio, who found himself 5-4 serving for the set. Nothing to do, Alcaraz equalized the score at 5-5 but at that point the schemes jumped: break by Fognini, counterbreak by Carlos and therefore tie break. Crowds, beautiful, with the crowd going crazy. The phenomenon from Murcia goes ahead 4-2 but recovers again, finding himself down 5-6, suffering screaming blows from the blue, and this time Fabio takes advantage of the opportunity and takes home the set. Unbelievable, but true.
Spanish reaction
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After treatment on Fognini’s right ankle, however, the furious Alcaraz enters the scene: thanks to Fabio’s normal physical decline, the Spaniard flies in no time to 4-0, to close the second 6-2. The third set looks like a photocopy of the previous one, but it’s not: after Alcaraz’s double break, Fognini manages to break the Spaniard’s serve and takes it up 3-2, and the game is played point by point. The Spaniard trembles but in the end, with a few too many tribulations, he manages to close 6-4 after 2 hours and 47 minutes of beautiful tennis, the likes of which you don’t often see around. No revenge for Fognini, but “only” open applause.
February 24, 2023 (change February 24, 2023 | 07:25)
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