When Carlos Alcaraz faced Tommy Paul at the Tennis Fest in Mexico, he made sure that the experience of watching an exhibition match was enjoyable by pulling off an almost impossible shot to win.
Nearly 30,000 people packed the Plaza de Toros México for the event’s second edition in Mexico City, and they received their money’s worth at the post-season competition. After such a demanding tennis season, playing at 2,200 meters above sea level was not easy, but world No. 2 Alcaraz and American Paul entertained the crowd.
With a 7-6, 6-3 victory, two-time Grand Slam champion Alcaraz prevailed. Late in the second set, he produced an incredible winner. Paul looked to have hit a deep winner, but the Spaniard recovered and sent a beautiful flick down the line with his back to the net.
Alcaraz accepted the cheers from Paul and the audience as the American cheered and bowed down to his opponent.
After the match, Alcaraz admitted that he enjoyed his stay in Mexico City and hopes to return. He said: “I’m looking forward to coming back; I’m very surprised by how well they welcomed me. I went to the Basilica, and I can’t wait to come back once again to do a bit more sightseeing. Little by little, we improved and showed a better game. In the end, I think that’s what tennis is about. Having fun, enjoying oneself, and making spectacular points. Thank you very much for the invitation and to the people who came to support us from start to finish.”
The shot that Alcaraz just hit in Mexico City. 🤣
Come on… pic.twitter.com/bxpPWIalTh
— José Morgado (@josemorgado) November 30, 2023
Carlos Alcaraz in 2023
WLWLLWLWWW Ranked world no.2, the Spaniard played his last match on the 18th of November when he lost to world no.1 Novak Djokovic 6-3 6-2 in the semifinal in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
This year Carlos has managed to achieve an overall 65-12 win-loss record. The Spaniard conquered 6 titles in 2023 in Buenos Aires, Indian Wells, Barcelona, Madrid, London and Wimbledon. Alcaraz reached the final in Rio de Janeiro and Cincinnati.
Tommy Paul in 2023
LLWWWWLWWL Currently the world no.13, the American played his last match on the 1st of November when he lost to world no.51 Botic Van De Zandschulp 6-4 2-6 6-3 in the 2nd round in Paris (draw).
Presently, during this year Paul has an overall 46-29 match record. Tommy Paul’s best accomplishment of this season was getting to the final in Acapulco, the Aix En Provence Challenger and Eastbourne.
Carlos Alcaraz and Tommy Paul squared off 4 times. Their head to head is 2-2. The last time they locked horns, Carlos Alcaraz won 7-6(6) 6-7(0) 6-3 in the 3rd round in Cincinnati (Western & Southern Open) on the 17th of August 2023.
In the following video you can watch the highlights.
