Top seed Carlos Alcaraz saved a match point Saturday to survive a thrilling contest against Hubert Hurkacz in the Western & Southern Open semi-finals.
The Spaniard found his best level in pressure moments to down Hurkacz 2-6, 7-6(4), 6-3 and reach his eighth final of the season. Alcaraz fended off a match point on serve at 4-5 in the second set and later won six consecutive points from 1/4 in the tie-break to force a decider.
Despite failing to convert any of his first 10 break points, the 20-year-old stayed focussed, earning a pivotal break in the fourth game of the third set and later closing the match after two hours, 16 minutes.
"It was a mental semi-final, I had to stay there," Alcaraz said in his on court-interview. "I had a lot of break points, it was really tough. Obviously saving a match point is never easy but with my coach, we were talking about staying positive all the time and to stay there. We knew I was going to have my chances and I tried to take it. Every match against Hubi is really, really tough but I'm really, really happy that I was able to win."
Alcaraz struck the ball with conviction to earn his third Lexus ATPHead2Head win against Hurkacz, whom he also defeated last week in the Toronto third round. The two-time major champion, who has played six consecutive three-setters, played aggressive on return, often taking Hurkacz's second serve on the rise to rush the 26-year-old.
"It's been a really tough tournament, all matches [have gone] three sets," Alcaraz said. "But I'm really happy to win these kind of matches and stay strong mentally, these matches are really good for me. I grow up a lot thanks to these matches."
Hurkacz jumped out to a 3-0 lead to start the match, including 10 consecutive points won as Alcaraz made just 43 per cent of first serves in the opening set. As the match wore on, the Wimbledon champion produced electric tennis in crucial moments, creating a turning point by firing a forehand past Hurkacz to earn a mini-break at 4/4 in the second-set tie-break.
Both players looked to dictate rallies and step inside the court throughout the semi-final, but it was Alcaraz who kept his cool under pressure, finishing with 36 unforced errors to Hurkacz's 44.
With his 53rd match win of the season, Alcaraz secured the top spot in Monday's Pepperstone ATP Rankings regardless of his result in the Cincinnati final, where he will meet World No. 2 Novak Djokovic, who defeated Alexander Zverev in the last four.
Alcaraz leads Djokovic 2-1 in their Lexus ATPHead2Head series and most recently ousted the 23-time major champion in a dramatic five-set Wimbledon final that lasted four hours, 43 minutes.
From match point down @carlosalcaraz turns ↪️ the match around to make the @CincyTennis final
— Tennis Insights (@tennis_insights) August 20, 2023
Pre v Post Match Point...#Steal 🆙from 35% to 54%#Conversion 🆙 from 69% to 90%
Fh #ShotQuality 🆙from 7.4 to 8.7#TennisInsights | @atptour pic.twitter.com/2zsXrpmjjX
A 12-time tour-level titlist, Alcaraz is eyeing his third Masters 1000 crown of the season, having already won in Indian Wells and Madrid. Alcaraz is the youngest Cincinnati finalist since Pete Sampras in 1991. Should he remain unbeaten in Masters 1000 finals to capture his fifth title at that level, Alcaraz would become the youngest Cincinnati champion since Boris Becker in 1985.
Hurkacz, who upset World No. 4 Stefanos Tsitsipas in the third round, is up three spots to No. 17 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. The Pole was competing in his fifth Masters 1000 semi-final.
Did You Know?
Alcaraz has spent 10 hours, 38 minutes on court across his four matches in Cincinnati.
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