At the China Open, Carlos Alcaraz’s scorching run of hard-court achievement doesn’t seem to be slowing down.
The Spaniard on Tuesday overcame Daniil Medvedev 7-5, 6-3 to reach the final at the ATP 500 in Beijing. After winning a superb first set that included five breakaways, Alcaraz blew past Medvedev in the second to complete an 88-minute victory in the semifinals.
Alcaraz talked after the match: “I think we both started the match pretty well. It was a little bit unusual, with the serve being broken many times in the first set. I broke his serve [for 3-2] and then in the next game, I don’t know what happened to me. I probably lost focus a little bit and missed a few first serves against Daniil on a hard court is a really important weapon. You have to put good first serves in to put yourself in the position to attack.”
He added: “I’m really happy that I didn’t lose my focus too long in the first set. I recovered it as soon as I got broken, and I’m really happy that at the end of the set, I was able to play really good tennis in the return game and then serve at 6-5. I did a really good game. After that, once you are one set up, it’s a little bit easier, playing against Daniil with more confidence.”
Medvedev sought treatment from the physiotherapist at 2-3 and 3-4 for a hip problem that seemed to be impeding his efforts in the second set. Even after both changeovers, the No. 5 in the PIF ATP Rankings was still very competitive.
Based on ATP Stats, Alcaraz converted five of the eleven break points he earned to complete his victory. This season, he has advanced to five tour-level finals, joining Jannik Sinner and Casper Ruud.
Alcaraz added: “Sometimes you think, ‘OK, it’s done’, but it’s not done. You have to keep fighting. You have to keep playing the same way that you were playing before and just forget about the opponent. You should focus on yourself and your tennis, so that’s what I tried to do. I was still playing the same way I had played until that point in the match. I didn’t lose the focus in that moment, so I’m really happy that I kept pushing.”
Statement in Beijing 💯@carlosalcaraz outclasses Medvedev to reach his fifth tour-level final this season.@ChinaOpen | #ChinaOpen pic.twitter.com/ow9zdMozd5
— ATP Tour (@atptour) October 1, 2024
Daniil Medvedev in 2024
Now ranked no.5, Daniil played his last match on the 1st of October when he surrendered to world no.3 Carlos Alcaraz 7-5 6-3 in the semifinal in Beijing (draw).
Currently, during this season Medvedev has managed to achieve an overall 42-17 win-loss record. Daniil Medvedev’s most significant accomplishment of the current year was reaching the final at the Australian Open and Indian Wells.
Daniil Medvedev will face the world no.220 Diego Schwartzman in the Round Robin on Sunday at 4:00 pm on CENTER COURT. Their actual record is 6-0 for Medvedev.
Medvedev was the runner-up at the Australian Open and in Indian Wells (BNP Paribas Open).
Daniil won 21 titles in his career: 11 on hard courts, 1 on clay courts, 8 on indoor courts and 1 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Alcaraz in Beijing, ranking, and results in 2024
WLWLLWLWWW Ranked world no.3, Carlos achieved an overall 47-9 win-loss record in 2024. Alcaraz is participating in Beijing where he conquered the world no.51 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard 6-4 6-4, the world no.39 Tallon Griekspoor 6-1 6-2, the world no.27 Karen Khachanov 7-5 6-2 and the world no.5 Daniil Medvedev 7-5 6-3.
Carlos Alcaraz will fight against the world no.358 Gabi Adrian Boitan in the . In the past, they have never competed against each other so far in top tournaments.
Carlos conquered 3 titles in 2024 in Indian Wells, French Open and Wimbledon. Carlos reached the final in Paris (Olympics).
The Spaniard won 16 titles in his career: 4 on hard courts, 8 on clay courts, 1 on indoor courts and 3 on grass courts. (See the list of his titles)
Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz clashed against each other 8 times. Their current head to head is 6-2 for Alcaraz. The last time they played, Carlos Alcaraz won 7-5 6-3 in the semifinal in Beijing (China Open) on the 1st of October 2024.
Here the video highlights.
Daniil Medvedev and Carlos Alcaraz |
| Embed from Getty Images |
