Child prodigy Carlos Alcaraz defeats Rafael Nadal for the first time

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Carlos Alcaráz

Photo: OSCAR DEL POZO / AFP

At the tennis tournament in Madrid, there was a Spanish duel between generations in the quarterfinals: Carlos Alcaraz, who had turned 19 the day before, prevailed for the first time in the third encounter with Rafael Nadal, 35.

In three sets, "the most exciting talent in the tennis world" won 6: 2, 1: 6, 6: 3.

At the beginning of the second set, the game seemed to be turning in favor of the veteran: Alcaraz had twisted his ankle painfully and looked visibly battered after a long break in treatment.

But the shooting star caught himself in the third set and is now the first player under 20 to defeat Nadal on clay.

Spain's King Felipe was also enthusiastic.

At the beginning of April, Alcaraz became the youngest player in 17 years to win a Masters tournament.

It was his third title on the tour after Umag 2021 and Rio de Janeiro 2022.

In the semifinals he now meets Novak Djokovic.

The world number one showed a sovereign performance in the Spanish capital with a 6: 3, 6: 4 against the Poland Hubert Hurkacz, who was in twelfth place.

He didn't have a preferred opponent for the semi-finals at this point: "I don't care who's on the other side of the net," said the Serb.

»I just want to get better and better, every day.

I am currently concentrating exclusively on myself.«

Alcaraz meets Djokovic in the semifinals

Since his comeback in early April, Djoković's goal has been to bring himself back to his top level for the French Open in Paris from May 22nd.

In Roland Garros, the 34-year-old is the defending champion.

At the Australian Open in January, the 20-time Grand Slam winner was not allowed to start as an unvaccinated athlete.

Alexander Zverev, number two on the seeding list, scores against Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime in the evening.

In the quarter-finals, the German prevailed against Lorenzo Musetti, who had to give up in the second round after losing the first set.