The Spaniard came back to defeat the American after nearly 3 hours of great tennis for his second win in two matches at the ATP Finals, but he’s not yet mathematically guaranteed a spot in the semifinals. If he beats Musetti on the final day, he’ll finish 2025 at the top of the rankings
Taylor Fritz’s consistency (and quality) versus the unbridled flair that accompanies Carlos Alcaraz’s boundless talent: this could be the summary—which, incidentally, is somewhat typical of many matches played by the Spaniard—of a match that Carlos closed out in the third set, 6-7, 7-5, 6-3. But it took the world No. 1 two hours and 47 minutes to overcome his opponent.
The match was a battle from the start, with breaks and counterbreaks in the opening games, poor decisions by Alcaraz—including a few ill-fated drop shots—brilliant backhands followed by glaring errors, delicate volleys, and numerous misjudgments. On the American’s side, however, there was a great deal of solidity, the ability to defend with straightforward tennis, and a refusal to ever give up. He has always been convinced he can win a Grand Slam, and in every single match he demonstrates character and a total refusal to let himself get down. As for Carlitos, his tendency to hit rough patches—already evident the day before yesterday against De Minaur—is well known, and it condemns him to wasting energy and risking heavy defeats. And indeed, the first set goes to the American: Carlitos fights his way to a tiebreak, which Fritz wins 7-2 with a double mini-break and two aces to close it out. It’s back to square one for the (provisional) world No. 1, who is also playing for the chance to remain at the top of the rankings at the end of the year in this match.
Key Points— The battle continues in the second set: in the fifth game, Alcaraz faces his first risks right away—first he misses an unnecessary drop shot, then he is hit with a powerful forehand from Fritz, and finally he closes out the point with a spectacular high volley, but the American puts on a show as well. It’s a key moment, and Alcaraz stays ahead 3-2, but it took 22 points to close it out. Then came moments of respite for both players, with perfect service games, and they stayed on serve—though with the first set already in the American’s pocket, it was still Carlitos who took the greater risks. You could say that Fritz’s chance at victory slipped away in the ninth game of the second set, when he made a poor shot choice on an open court and allowed the Spaniard to take a 5-4 lead, despite the many difficulties he had faced.
stamina— But Fritz didn’t give up; he fell to the ground—fortunately without injury—and kept fighting. 6-5, 0-40: Fritz was tired but wouldn’t let go; he tried to defend himself but made too many errors, and Carlos secured the break at the last moment to force a third set. The decisive set also starts off evenly matched, but Fritz’s strength and stamina have waned (was it the slip? Perhaps more so the thought of that missed opportunity). And the sigh of relief for Alcaraz and his fans comes in the sixth game, when a now-flagging Fritz gets broken—or rather, inflicts a self-break on himself with a forehand error and a painful double fault. At that point, Carlitos was almost there: he took a 5-2 lead, squandered a match point on Fritz’s serve, delighted the crowd with a veronica, but Fritz fought back to make it 5-3. This time, the talented Spaniard didn’t make any more mistakes: in the final game, he unleashed a barrage of volleys and didn’t waste a single match point. Tired but happy (127 points to 115), Carlitos has his sights set on the semifinals—but his spot will only be secured if De Minaur beats Musetti tonight. Otherwise, everything will be decided on the final day, against the Italian himself.
