ANI
31 May 2023, 23:33 GMT+10
Paris [France], May 31 (ANI): Carlos Alcaraz bounced back from a mid-match slump on Wednesday at Roland Garros to secure his place in the third round of the French Open for the third straight year.
He defeated Taro Daniel by 6-1, 3-6, 6-1, 6-2. After capturing the first set, Alcaraz suffered a concentration dip in the second set and lost it. However, the 20-year-old was quick to regain his composure and win the match in two hours, 25 minutes.
The top-seed improved his season record to 32 wins-three losses.
"Taro was playing great. He is a really tough player and this year he has won matches against great players," Alcaraz said as quoted by ATP. "The conditions were tough and it was really, really tough, but you have to adjust your game as best as you can. I was really focused on every shot. I played a great level and was happy with the win," he added.
The top-ranked men's singles star is chasing his fifth-tour-level title of the year and second major title in Paris.
The 2022 US Open winner won on hard at Indian Wells after earlier this year's victories on clay in Madrid, Barcelona, and Buenos Aires.
Denis Shapovalov, who defeated Italian Matteo Arnaldi 6-2, 3-6, 6-3, 6-3, will be the next opponent for the Spaniard, who defeated Daniel with 46 winners.
Alcaraz, a participant in last year's quarterfinals, is presently ranked second in the ATP Live Race to Turin. If the 20-year-old wins his 11th tour-level championship at the clay-court major, he would surpass Live Race leader Daniil Medvedev, who was unexpectedly eliminated in the first round on Tuesday.
On the other side, Thanasi Kokkinakis's persistence and determination paid off as he defeated Stan Wawrinka on Wednesday.
He defeated Wawrinka by 3-6, 7-5, 6-3, 6-7(4), 6-3 in a four-hour, 38-minute battle.
On Court Simonne-Mathieu, Kokkinakis had transformed a set and a break disadvantage into a two-sets-to-one lead, but 2015 champion Wawrinka quickly built an insurmountable 5/0 lead in the fourth-set tie-break to force a deciding set in front of a rapt audience.
Before Wawrinka again mounted a comeback, Kokkinakis, 27, regained the initiative by storming to a 4-0 lead in the decisive. The Swiss turned around a thrilling final game at 5-3, saving four match chances after recovering from a 40/0 deficit on return, but he was helpless to save the fifth as the Australian Kokkinakis dug deep to win.
"The first set and a half he was playing I think the best tennis he can play," said Kokkinakis of the Swiss.
"I was just trying to hang in there. I lost a match in a Grand Slam earlier this year against Murray from two sets to love [up], I did not want to do it against another legend.""Having 40/0 [in the last game], you can imagine the things coming into my mind. He never went away. It seemed like when he was down, he was playing better tennis, but I just trusted myself and I am so happy," he concluded.
Kokkinakis next opponent will be Karen Khachanov. The 11th seed Karen won by 6-3, 6-4, 6-2 against the qualifier Radu Albot.
The French Open started on May 22 and will take place till June 11, 2023. (ANI)Get a daily dose of Paris Guardian news through our daily email, its complimentary and keeps you fully up to date with world and business news as well.
Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Paris Guardian.
More InformationMADRID, Spain: Liverpool footballer Diogo Jota and his younger brother, André Silva, have died in a car accident in Spain. Spanish...
LONDON, U.K.: An unrelenting heatwave sweeping across Europe has pushed early summer temperatures to historic highs, triggering deadly...
President Donald Trump's plans to build a space-based Golden Dome missile defense shield have drawn immediate criticism from China,...
NEW YORK CITY, New York: Paramount has agreed to pay US$16 million to settle a lawsuit brought by U.S. President Donald Trump over...
LONDON, U.K.: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer won a vote in Parliament this week to move ahead with changes to the country's welfare...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday. President...
FRANKLIN, Tennessee: Hundreds of thousands of Nissan and Infiniti vehicles are being recalled across the United States due to a potential...
REDMOND, Washington: Microsoft is the latest tech giant to announce significant job cuts, as the financial strain of building next-generation...
LONDON UK - U.S. stock markets were closed on Friday for Independence Day. Global Forex Markets Wrap Up Friday with Greeback Comeback...
SANTA CLARA, California: Nvidia came within a whisker of making financial history on July 3, briefly surpassing Apple's all-time market...
SACRAMENTO, California: California's multibillion-dollar farms are facing a growing crisis—not from drought or pests, but from a sudden...
WASHINGTON, D.C.: President Donald Trump says the United States could soon reach a trade deal with India. He believes this deal would...