Carlos Alcaraz’s first match in a Grand Slam tournament was at the 2021 Australian Open. He beat the Dutchman Botic van de Zandchulp, precisely the last executioner of Rafael Nadal. He was 17 years old, but he already made it clear that he was born to play on the big stages. Carlitos began his career this Monday in the sixteenth major of his career and did not fail in the second round. It has never been missing.
His first victim at the Margaret Court Arena in Melbourne Park was Alexander Shevchenko, 6-1, 7-5 and 6-1, in 1 hour and 54 minutes.
Shevchenko was a familiar face for the Murcian. Not in vain had they faced each other in the last edition of the Mutua Madrid Open. On that occasion, the Kazakh found himself with a serve from Carlitos that has nothing to do with the current one.
The Murcian runs forward.Vincent Thian
The pupil of Juan Carlos Ferrero presented a new service to society that stands out for three aspects: different starting position; more leg support for weight transfer; brings the racket closer to his right leg to shorten the movement and eliminate pauses in the movement. The objective of all this is to gain rhythm and fluidity in the staging of the ball.
Ferrero, a true student of biomechanics, He looks for formulas so that his player has more weapons to face opponents of the caliber of Jannik Sinner. Four years ago, Juanqui introduced the first big change in his pupil’s serve: “I made a biomechanical change in his abdominals. As a child he had been injured in that area quite a few times and I looked for a simple movement so that the back leg would help him support it a little better and that on a biomechanical level the movement would be good, simple and direct.
Preserving the abdominal area continues to be an objective in the world number three’s team, which has added Samuel López to its bench. “I make a movement with a more relaxed wrist and without stopping when I arrive with the racket up. When you play more relaxed, you avoid more tension. It is clear that things have to change and you cannot stagnate. To be at the highest level you have to adapt to what they demand of you,” Carlitos explained in the preview.
Start subtracting
Alcaraz always chooses to subtract when he wins the draw “because he feels more comfortable”they say from their coaching staff. He repeated the script again in his debut at the Australian Open. The organization relegated him to the second center because Jannik Sinner asked to play on Monday when he was supposed to do so on Tuesday. Now the Italian will have two days of rest before facing the second round against local Tristan Schoolkate.
-Shevchenko already enjoyed a break ball in the second game. Her rival neutralized her with an effective second serve. Carlitos was greasing the machinery. “Come on Charlie,” he repeated. From a possible 0-2 it went to 6-1 for the four-time champion of a major.
Alcaraz, with the bandage.Vincent Thian
Alcaraz hit the ball with speeds that reached 205 kilometers per hour. He went out to play with a bandage on his right thigh, a common image in many games in the last two seasons.. Especially since the 2023 edition of Wimbledon, which ended up going in their favor.
Alexander had just played with Kazakhstan in the United Cup semifinals and defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas. Although that is no longer news. The sequence of games favorable to the Spanish continued until 1-1 in the second act. It was then when the third favorite in the draw achieved the fourth break of the match to place a favorable 3-1. It was 4-1, but he delivered the serve for the first time.
The score was tied at three and two more break balls for the Kazakh. Shevchenko took advantage of the second. Alcaraz had stopped and his rival had exactly the opposite. Much more active with his legs, he went up to 5-3. The Spaniard reacted in time, adding four games in a row. The third set only had the story that Carlos wanted. With a more powerful right, helped by the five extra grams in the neck of the racketeverything is easier. That is why he presented a statistic of 38 winners, 20 more than his first victim on the courts of Melbourne Park.
Nishioka, next
The tennis player from El Palmar will meet the Japanese on Wednesday in the second round Yoshihito Nishioka, el 65 de la ATP. The first scored the only precedent between the two in the Paris-Bercy Masters 1000, in 2022.
