Melbourne [Australia], January 17 : Spanish sensation Carlos Alcaraz continued his mission 'Career Grand Slam' as he advanced to the fourth round of the competition with a win over Nuno Borges on Friday, the ATP website reported.
Alcaraz, chasing his maiden Australian Open title and his fifth Grand Slam title, dropped his first set of the tournament, but still secured a win by 6-2, 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-2.
After moving to the fourth round of the Australian Open for the second time in four appearances, Alcaraz is aiming to become the youngest-ever player to complete a Career Grand Slam at the age of 21. A break in the opening game set the tone for Borges and Alcaraz dominated the serve from the start. He lost just six points on serve during the first two sets and converted nine of his first 11 net points.
Borges continued to put up a brave fight and in the third set, it went to a tie-break. During that, Borges was the aggressor against an inconsistent Alcaraz and forced the fourth set to be played. However, the final set was an easy one, losing just one point on serve as he cruised to a win.
Speaking after the match as quoted by the ATP official website, "I missed Rod Laver (Rod Laver Arena). I am just really, really happy to be able to play here once again. I tried to show my best tennis here. For me, it has been a pleasure every time that I step on this court... The last time that I played here I lost [to Alexander Zverev in the 2024 quarter-finals], so I really wanted to play here and get another win here in Rod Laver."
"I am just happy to see a full crowd here watching my matches. It is just a privilege to feel this love here in Australia, in the other part of the world. I am trying to play different tennis, some different kinds of shots. That is what makes me enjoy playing tennis, what makes me smile on the court and helps me to show really good tennis and try to entertain the people as well, making them happy," he added.
After succumbing to his second head-head loss to Alcaraz, Borges could not reach the fourth round of the Australian Open after securing a fourth-round finish last year.
The next challenge for Alcaraz in the fourth round will be either Jack Draper or Aleksandar Vukic and after that, he could face the Serbian tennis icon Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinals. While he can surpass Zverev to reach the second spot, neither Alcaraz nor Zverev stand a chance to dislodge the number one Jannik Sinner.
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