Carlos Alcaraz of Spain claimed a comeback win against countryman Jaume Munar on Monday evening at the Rio Open.
Down a lopsided set against a familiar foe in fellow Spaniard Jaume Munar, Alcaraz remained calm. The seventh seed cleaned up his game and showed no fear of taking the initiative in points to rally past Munar 2-6, 6-2, 6-1 for a place in the second round.
"Jaume was playing really, really well. He played more matches on clay in the last tournaments than me. I didn't play on clay since July last year, so it was really tough for me," Alcaraz said after the match. "I knew it was going to be difficult. But I'm really happy with the way I turned around the match."
Last year in Marbella, where the pair also met on clay, Munar defeated Alcaraz in straight sets. But this time, the younger Spaniard was unrelenting.
The seventh seed will next play Argentine Federico Delbonis or Colombian Daniel Elahi Galan.
In other Monday action, Spaniard Pedro Martinez eliminated 17-year-old Juncheng Shang 6-3, 6-4 in one hour and 43 minutes. Martinez saved all three break points he faced against the former junior World No. 1 and will next play third seed Diego Schwartzman.
Another Spaniard, Pablo Andujar, also advanced. In a battle of 36-year-olds, Andujar ousted Pablo Cuevas 7-6(2), 7-5 after two hours and 12 minutes. Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic eliminated Brazilian wild card Felipe Meligeni Rodrigues Alves 6-3, 6-0.
( With inputs from ANI )
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