Carlos Alcaraz on Sunday celebrated “being almost at the door” of becoming the top ranked tennis player in the world again after defending his Madrid Open title.
The Spaniard earned his 10th career title with a hard-fought 6-4, 3-6, 6-3 win over Jan-Lennard Struff and can reclaim the world No. 1 ranking from Novak Djokovic simply by playing a single match at the Italian Open, before the French Open.
Currently ranked second, Alcaraz spent 20 weeks in the top spot after his US Open triumph in September last year, becoming the youngest player to reach world No. 1.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Djokovic’s Australian Open triumph saw him depose Alcaraz, but the 20-year-old confirmed he would play next week in Rome.
“These are very nice achievements, winning my fourth Masters 1000, defending my title here and being almost at the door of recovering the No. 1 spot,” Alcaraz told a news conference.
“These are very big things I’m doing, and I’m very proud of the work and of these accomplishments. I am ambitious and we’ll try and go for Rome,” he said.
Alcaraz continued his Roland Garros buildup by adding the Madrid trophy to victories in Barcelona, Buenos Aires and Indian Wells this year, although he was below his best against lucky loser Struff, the world No. 65.
The triumph and his impending return to the top of the rankings reiterated his bright future at the game’s summit.
Alcaraz said his only worry for his future in tennis is injury, rather than any mental aspects.
“You have to try to take care of yourself as much as possible,” Alcaraz said.
“The mental issue, of getting tired of winning, traveling or playing tennis, doesn’t worry me because I know it’s not going to happen,” he said. “What may worry me in the future is the issue of injuries, which is what we are going to try to take care of together with my team.”
OFFENSE SHINES: First baseman Pan Chie-kai hit a solo homer in the fifth inning as all 10 batters Taiwan used contributed at least one hit toward their team total of 14 One day after their first shutout loss at the WBSC Premier12, Taiwan yesterday bounced back with a commanding 8-2 victory over the US, keeping their hopes for a spot in tomorrow’s final alive. The win in the Super Round marked Taiwan’s first triumph over the US at a top-tier international baseball tournament since 2003. Their previous win over the US was at the 2003 Baseball World Cup, with only one win in the previous 10 matchups since 1999. Yesterday’s game was tightly contested through the first six innings, with the margin never exceeding two runs. However, the tide turned in the top of
“Please love us. Please cheer us on. We have been working hard. Do not give up on us.” Taiwan captain Chen Chieh-hsien’s heartfelt plea echoed across the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 tournament after a historic victory. Rather than boasting, Chen was making an earnest appeal after leading Taiwan to a 4-0 victory over Japan to claim their first major international baseball title at the senior level. Chen’s decisive three-run homer in the fifth inning and his Premier12 leading .632 batting average secured him the Premier12’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) title. He was also named one of the tournament’s outstanding defensive players
WELL-AGED: Although the youngest team in the tournament, Taiwan featured several veteran stars, including Sunday’s home-run hero Chen Chieh-hsien “I will never forget today,” veteran Taiwanese pitcher Chen Kuan-yu said after Taiwan on Sunday night blanked Japan to secure their first ever gold in the World Baseball Softball Confederation’s (WBSC) Premier12 championship. Chen, who at 34 is the oldest member on the team, said Taiwan “made every difficult step to come to today’s victory. I will never forget today.” Taiwan made history when they won their first gold medal of the Premier12 tournament, beating Japan in a 4-0 shutout victory in the final at the Tokyo Dome. It was a jaw-dropping victory for many baseball commentators who went into the game with
Nikola Jokic on Saturday scored 34 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to spark the Denver Nuggets over the Los Angeles Lakers 127-102, continuing their dominance of the NBA rivalry, while Scotty Pippen Jr scored a career-best 30 points to lead the Memphis Grizzlies past the Chicago Bulls, 142-131. The Nuggets won for the 13th time in the past 14 contests against the Lakers, including ousting the Lakers in the playoffs the past two seasons. Serbian star Jokic failed to achieve his sixth consecutive triple-double, managing only eight assists, but his effort was plenty as Michael Porter Jr added 24 points and 11
RSS