Tennis
The surprising defeat of Casper Ruud opens the door for the Murcian to climb positions in the ‘ranking’ again
Carlos Alcaraz’s next obstacle at the Mutua Madrid Open will be a familiar rival, Cameron Norrie. The two have seen each other twice, both on the fast track and with a favorable outcome for the Murcian. The Briton, seeded ninth and who this Thursday got rid of John Isner (6-4, 6-7(5) and 6-4), will try to balance the balance on the clay of the Caja Mágica.
Alcaraz and Norrie met in two of the great tournaments with the best memory for Ferrero’s pupil. The first occasion was in the first round of the US Open. The Murcian, who for the first time entered the final table of a Grand Slam without going through the previous one, faced a tough debut against a top seed, but he shook off the challenge with authority: 6-4, 6-4 and 6- 3. It was Alcaraz’s first step in New York, where he dazzled the tennis world.
In the second match, less than two months ago in Indian Wells, the script was repeated. After a difficult start, Alcaraz took the helm and settled that quarterfinal match 6-4, 6-3. After that triumph, he achieved his best result until then in a Masters 1,000, although he fell to Rafael Nadal in the semifinals.
Options to go up in the ‘ranking’
In fact, if he beats Norrie in the third round, it will probably be the prelude to a confrontation with the man from Manacori in the quarterfinals in Madrid. This Wednesday, while resting from the singles draw, he continued looking for sensations in doubles together with Marc López, although they fell in the round of 16 against Skupski and Koolhof (3-6, 6-3 and 7-10).
However, good news came to him from the other parties. Casper Ruud starred in one of the surprises of the day when he lost to Dusan Lajovic (7-6, 2-6, 6-4). As last year he reached the semifinals, he loses so many points that he will leave Madrid behind Alcaraz. Furthermore, if he wins his next match, the Murcian would also overtake Berrettini. However, it is still early to ensure that the man from El Palmar will climb several positions in the ranking, since he could also lose positions to Félix Auger-Aliassime, Jannik Sinner or Cameron Norrie himself if they go far.
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