Some thought that Casper Ruud was a clay-court specialist. Others thought that Carlos Alcaraz was still a year or two away from stardom.
Wrong on both counts.
Ruud and Alcaraz will battle for the Miami Open title on Sunday afternoon, with both players making their debut appearances in a final at the Masters 1000 level. Ruud is 7-2 lifetime in ATP finals, all of which have come at 250 tournaments. Alcaraz, who is only 18 years old, is 17-2 this season and already owns a 500-point title (Rio de Janeiro).
This marks their second head-to-head meeting, as they squared off last spring on the red clay of Marbella and Alcaraz rolled 6-2, 6-4.
“I barely had any chance at all,” Ruud admitted. “He was just coming out firing flames at me.”
Alcaraz has been doing that against just about everyone in 2022. Only Matteo Berrettini (Australian Open) and Rafael Nadal (Indian Wells) have managed to withstand the teenager’s onslaught. Miomir Kecmanovic and Hubert Kecmanovic came close in the Miami quarters and semis, respectively, but nobody has been able to stop Alcaraz this fortnight. The world No. 16 preceded those victories with straight-set defeats of Marton Fucsovics, Marin Cilic, and Stefanos Tsitsipas.
Prior to 2021, Ruud was 16-27 lifetime in ATP hard-court matches. He is since 36-13. The turnaround that began last year included a title in San Diego and a semifinal showing at the Nitto ATP Finals. Continuing to thrive on hard courts while also benefiting from relatively slow Miami conditions, the eighth-ranked Norwegian has advanced so far this fortnight by taking out Henri Laaksonen, Alexander Bublik, Cameron Norrie, Alexander Zverev, and Francisco Cerundolo.
It has been a mostly favorable draw for Ruud and you might think that getting to play the No. 14 seed in the final is a continuation of that trend. But people have thought wrong about these guys in the past, and that mistake won’t be made again. It’s clear that Alcaraz represents a nightmare matchup for Ruud–and for just about anyone else these days.
Alcaraz is having no trouble blasting winners from all directions through these slow conditions. Moreover, he will benefit from a much-needed day of rest following hard-fought contests against Kecmanovic and Hurkacz on Thursday and Friday.
Ruud may be on a roll, himself, but Alcaraz is simply at a different level.
Pick: Alcaraz in 2
Gosh the insanity is multiplying. BG saying he is going to emulate Rafa’s 2005 season and Kafelnikov saying he would take him over Rafa at RG!
Novax apparently won’t get a look in!
This is silly stuff.
I know I keep repeating myself but slams are completely different heavy and the idea he will suddenly beat Rafole isn’t warranted imo…
What do they think the best returner of All time will do to his serve? And why would be beat the GOAT clay courter?
How is he going to beat both of them?
different gravy not heavy!
A slam is a very different tournament. Best of five set matches. It requires a certain level of physical and mental conditioning. There us a reason why these young guys can’t break through. The exception was Thiem beating Zverev at the USO after Novak was defaulted. Then there was Meddy defeating Novak at the USO. That was a breakthrough win for the nextgen. Beating one of the top three.
How protective som e people are of their favourite player.Already worrying about a potential matchup .Why not just enjoy the moment,and not get too carried away either there have been many teenage sensations who were past it by the time of their mid twenties
Big Al, it’s true but we wouldn’t be tennis fans if we didn’t have our anxieties about our favorites! I used to visit Roger Federer”s website years ago and whenever he had to play Rafa most of his fans would naturally concede his defeat, even is slams!! And this is Roger Federer we’re talking about, and most times they had every reason to believe he would lose bcoz he did!! It does not mean that they don’t have any belief in Roger, they were going based on past performance!! My point is that I believe Alcaraz is good enough to give Rafa troubles in clay season bcoz he IS that good, whether we want to accept it or not!
No, Mona, Rafa is much better on clay than on the HCs, and Rafa had already beaten the red hot Alcaraz on the HC at IW, when Rafa himself was having some physical problems.
Alcaraz is not yet a world beater, remember he could’ve lost to Kecmanovic in the third set TB in their QF but he survived, barely. He may not be so fortunate next time! It may be his destiny here at Miami, announcing to the world that he is the next big deal in men’s tennis.
It’s interesting to know that Fed reached his first ever Masters final, at Miami in 2002; Rafa his first too, at Miami in 2005, and Djoko reached his first at IW in 2007 and then went on to win at Miami that same year.
I wasn’t following Rafa back in 2005.
But am I right in saying that Rafa beat Fed in Miami in 2004 and would have won Miami the next year ie 2005 if Miami was bo3 as it is now as he won the first 2 sets against Fed?
I don’t want to put Alcaraz down but he didn’t have to face Fed at his peak to win a masters! Obviously there is zero comparison between Fed and Ruud?!
Apologies if I have misremembered!
Both BG and Courier have said Alcaraz will win one of the next 4 slams.
Al,
Thank you. There is something to be said fir just enjoying the moment without getting too carried away. Good advice.
No one knows what’s going to happen in the upcoming tournaments!!! I am not saying that Alcaraz is going to beat Rafole, all I’m saying is that he’s a legitimate threat which he is!! Did anyone think Rafa would have lost RG last year? Of course not but yet he did! Did anyone believe Rafa was going to win AO? Of course not, but yet he did!! I am just giving my perspective according to what is happening now! Rafa”s form is so so and he’ll be 36!! As much as I will be glad to c him win RG I don’t feel as confident as in previous years especially given the current situation with someone like Alcaraz in the mix! It’s just a further cog in Rafa”s wheel even if he’s the favorite!! Some ppl here r acting like they have never had their reservations about Rafa”s abilities!! We ALL have! This time I have mine but I hope he proves me wrong!!! Vamos!!
I thought Rafa was going to lose at RG last year once I started to watch! I thought he was really off mentally and in the latter part of the match against Novax he seemed to be impeded physically.
We now know he had been compromised by the foot problem for a long time before Rg.
By the look of it, Alcaraz may be the real deal. Juan Carlos was so happy watching Alcaraz won his first Masters!
One commentator said that Alcaraz’s game style is a combination of the big three, and I somehow agree with him. Alcaraz could attack like Fed, rallies from the baseline like Djoko, good at both wings, CC or DTL. And, his mindset is like Rafa – focused, intense and never gives up a point!
He will be very hard to beat when he gets better. However, right now Rafa and Djoko won’t be so easily beaten by Alcaraz imo. They will beat him more often now before he gets to beat them, before they call it a day with their professional tennis career.
It amazes me that Meddy has been all but forgotten here. I did not know he had any kind of injury. But he has been the best player for a while now. He did beat one of the top three in a slam. He pushed Rafa to five sets at the USO. There is a reason he was in position to get the # 1 ranking. Even though he was not able to hold onto it very long, he can still get it back.
He has shown mental and physical strength. He had Rafa on the ropes in the AO final. We all know how it ended up. But he has been able to bring it in the slams where it counts the most. He is only 25 and until just recently, there was all this talk about whether he was as good as Novak. My answer is no. Not yet. But he has the game to be successful in this sport. We should not forget about him. He’s not going anywhere.
Thiem would have been the other success story until he had the wrist injury. He has battled at RG in recent years, making the semis and the final. He even beat Novak st RG. But now we have to wait and see his he looks nice he gets over Covid. The last thing he needed right now.
Tsitsipas was heralded by some as one of the young guys who could far. Maybe his new coach will help with his recent inconsistency. He is still worth keeping an eye on. Zverev, Berrettini, Rublev. A lot of talented young guys. They are not going anywhere.
For some reason none of these guys really gave me the shivers even with all the talk about their potential!! I never saw them bothering Rafa either even after they had beaten him here and there! But there is just something about Alcaraz that makes me very unsettled! I’m not sure if it is bcoz he is like Rafa in many ways! His presence reminds me very much like Rafa when he arrived!! Beating everyone left right and center, including the mighty Roger!! He has not beaten Rafa or Novak yet but when he does, it will make things extremely difficult for them bcoz he’s a confidence guy just like Rafa!! And now with this win? I suppose I’ll just have to wait and c!! But this damn kid makes me nervous!! Very nervous!! Sigh!!
I am not nervous about this kid. What I am concerned about is Rafa recovering and being able to play well in the clay court season. That is what is important. As long as Rafa is healthy, everything will be okay.
I was very nervous about Rafa playing Meddy in the AO final. Because Meddy has proven himself to be a real threat at slams. He is the real deal.
I am not worried about Alcaraz at RG. I am not going to worry about that at this time. As long as Rafa can come back healthy. Everything else will take care of itself.
Well, I can’t argue with you there!! But just hope this kid does not become a major pest, especially for Rafa!!! Alcaraz is so swift , agile and everywhere! It’s like the court is just not big enough where he is concerned! It’s like Fedal and Nole all wrapped up in one freaking bundle!!! 🤣 But like u say Native, let’s c if he wins more and perhaps it will be just cause to be nervous.
Come on Monalisa, this kid is not unbeatable, and he’s not a world beater, at least not yet. Haven’t you seen him almost got beaten by Kecmanovic? And Kecmanovic is no Rafa or Djoko!
Yes, he had beaten three top ten players to win his first Masters title, credit to him for that, but, Tsitsipas was not playing his best tennis for sure; Hurkacz the defending champion was too one dimensional imo, and Ruud himself was a first time Masters finalist .
He may have the combined special qualities of the big three but he’s still a raw talent right now. I don’t think Rafa and Djoko are shaking in their boots right now; for the two are far more experienced and more skilful than any other player(s) on the tour (excluding Fed here).
Rafa may feel happy right now, that Spanish tennis will continue to flourish in the coming years, when he himself says goodbye to the tour.
Mona,
I am not telling you not to feel what you feel. I am just trying to put it in perspective. Rafa’s biggest challenge right now is recovering from the stress fracture in the rib. Not Alcazar. We are always from RG. For now Alcazar should enjoy this victory. It is a big deal to win a Masters 1000. He is on a hot streak. But it’s not forever. Novak has his streak of 40or 41 wins in the beginning of 2011. I remember people online saying that Rafa would never beat him again. But Rafa figured it out and came back strong in 2012. Then he got the better of Novak at slams for a few years.
Alcazar seems to have a lot going for him. But he is still a work in progress. The other tennis players are not going to disappear.
Once Rafa is healthy again and ready to go for it on clay, then maybe I can worry about Alcazar.
If he makes you nervous, then you are entitled to have your feelings. But I try to have a wait and see attitude. I just don’t care to give him victories in advance. He needs to go out there and earn them.
👍NNY!
Lucky,
I saw the match with Kecmanovic. He was up 5-3 in that third set tiebreak. He has his chances. The more I see of him, the more I am impressed with his game.
I know you liked Tsitsipas a lot. He seems to be very inconsistent right now. Maybe this new coach will help. I have not seen much of Hurkacz. Ruud should benefit from being in his first final.
I expect Meddy to continue to do well. If he has this hernia, he can deal with it and get back on track.
Yes NNY, Meddy is not going away; he’ll be back during the US summer which is the best part of the year for him, and then followed by European Indoor HC, another of his favourite.
He has won Canada, Cincy, USO, Shanghai, Paris and WTF, not so many during early part of each season and also on clay and grass.
Yeah, you’re right NNY.
Alcaraz may be the next big thing but he’s not yet a world beater. Many people tend to compare him to young Rafa because they’re teenagers when they started to win big titles and also he’s from Spain.
But, to say that he’s going to win the FO this year is really disrespectful to both Rafa and Djoko!
People are eager to find someone to replicate the big three – first Fed, followed by Djoko and now Rafa(because Rafa’s style is the hardest to replicate among the big three).
I remember they are quick to call Gasquet baby Fed when they saw Gasquet with his beautiful SHBH and he was young and looked promising back then. When Gasquet wasn’t able to live up to their expectations, they jumped onto the Dimi bandwagon when he appeared. Dimi was unhappy that they labelled him as the next baby Fed. Dimi didn’t deliver and then came Tsitsipas, another Fed look alike in terms of groundstrokes and SHBH. So far Tsitsipas has yet to deliver though he’s up there at top five in the rankings.
When Meddy started to make headlines by beating Djoko at Cincy in 2019 and pushing Rafa to the limit at the USO final that year, he became the next Djoko in the making because of their similar game style. Meddy has at least won a slam now and has become number one for three weeks, but whether he’s the next Djoko or not it’s yet to be seen.
There’s no one who plays a similar style like Rafa, but now that this Alcaraz kid appears and he’s from Spain and winning a Masters at 18 and about to make the top ten very soon, people get excited and wanting to see whether he will be another Rafa in the making.
People haven’t learnt their lessons though especially those so called experts in tennis. The big three are hard to replicate or duplicate, they are special (and they are so good because they have each other to push themselves to be better!).
The field right now doesn’t look as great as during the ‘Golden Age of Tennis’, so fingers crossed, about how the younger players or the next big things will do in the future.
posted
Knockout!
Wow young Alcaraz!
Well done.
Any news on rafa amy ? How is he recovering ..I looked around and just found he was doing some leg exercises in gym..anything about the rib, the pain ? It’s 2 weeks now
I haven’t seen anything new sanju! I checked with the usual sources e.g. genny today and there was nothing new.
You probably heard that Mark Petchey put out a rumour last week that Rafa was coming back for Barcelona! But Genny was sceptical about the validity of this somewhat tenuous rumour and so am I.
I would actually be pretty nervous if he came back so quickly as imo the most important thing is to make sure the injury is completely healed as his doctor said there is a risk of recurrence if he comes back too early.
RG is the prize not the lead up tournament s frustrating as the situation is right now.
It seems pretty certain that he will at least have Rome and we know from 2020 that is enough. Rafa being injury free is especially important given that wimby is only 3 weeks after RG.
He has to play both slams with a fighting chance! If he is worried about injury you can bet that his mental state will suffer so he has to come back feeling confident it is gone.
I think David Ferrer, now tournament director at Barcelona, said that Rafa would be doing “something” there. I think that’s where the always unreliable Petchey got the idea. I’m sure Rafa will listen to his doctor. He will NOT want a recurrence of this injury. Rafa might come over to Barcelona to do some publicity/press work for them, I guess. He loves the club and is good friends with Ferrer, of course.
From what I heard, he is making his return sooner than expected. Think he announced something on SM! Wow!! Exciting times ahead!!!
R u sure Mona?! I haven’t seen anything and I read Genny today who is always in the know…
Well truth be told, a girlfriend of mine told me yesterday but I didn’t ask her about the source 🙈. But u right, I’ve just checked his Facebook page and see nothing that speaks to this
Confidence or overconfidence https://mobile.twitter.com/WeAreTennis/status/1511287498160365573
Overconfidence is the name, sanju. Why won’t he be
ridiculously overconfident, When some rafa fans believe he’s the best thing since sliced bread and is so terrifying. He’ll beat and bagel Rafa 6-0, 6-0, 6-0. Destroy Novak and thiem in straight sets and win the next 8 grandslams. My God! Sanju, we are so terrified of this glorious wonder of a player. However shall we survive his inevitable domination. He’ll win 40 grandslams by the time he’s 30yrs and be the GOAT of all sports. There’s no one like him. Let’s bow down and praise this GOD of tennis.
LOL!
I guess we are taking the hype to its absurd limit!
I already weighed in. I am concerned about Rafa coming back recovered and healthy. Then he can pick up where he left off.
If the kid wants to be over confident, then let him. Talk is cheap. I have always believed that. He is feeling it right now.
Anyway, I needed a good laugh.
The kid is full of confidence, but at least he doesn’t want to say that he’ll win RG this year, probably out of respect for Rafa!
He may be thinking of winning at USO, as Wimbledon which is grass surface may be his worst surface and who’s going to bet against Djoko at Wimbledon? He did reach the QF at USO last year so perhaps he thinks he can win this time?
The last teenager to win a slam is Rafa, and that’s in 2005, 17 years ago, so maybe Alcaraz wants to be like Rafa and starts to win a slam or two when still a teenager. He has four chances now, starting from RG this year.
Let’s keep our fingers crossed and see what he can achieve from now on, whether he’ll get slapped on his face for talking big, or he’ll get applauded for achieving what has not been achieved in the past 17 years.
We still havent had the new Fed or Novax , but the new ‘Rafa’ may be the new tennis messiah, all three in one?
New Fed is Tsitsipas (and also Shapo. Imo Shapo plays more like Fed, except that he goes for broke too often and too much); new Djoko is Meddy! So far new Djoko is the best as he has already won a slam! There’s a new Delpo too imo, in Zverev, or even Sinner?!
As for new Rafa, sorry not yet appear, as no one plays like Rafa! This Alcaraz kid is not new Rafa, its just that he’s also from Spain, like Rafa. He doesn’t play his game like Rafa’s, he’s the combination of the big three.
Ha ha, he may be the new big three all in one! Just kidding, he’s yet to prove his worth, though he has now announced to the tennis world that he may be the next big thing in tennis, after the big three.
I agree with Lucky. Although I am not sure that Meddy is the new Novak yet. But he definitely has a game much like Novak’s.
I think Tsitsipas also needs some work to get to Fed’s game. Meddy has definitely separated himself from the pack after beating Novak at the USO last year. Then he was in the final at the AO. Back to back final appearances. Won one. He became # 1. I believe they said that has not happened for over 15 years. I think it’s been the top four of Fed, Rafa, Novak and Murray. He did not have it long, but he will have his chances to get it back.
I agree that no one plays like Rafa. We may never see anyone like him again. He has shots that are unique to him. I don’t know what I will do when he retires. It has to happen. But it has been such a special experience watching him.
At one time I thought Thiem might be the one to break through first. He did win the USO, although it was against Zverev. But he was the first to win a slam. He was knocking on the door at RG. If not for Rafa, he could have won. But now he is coming back from a wrist injury and has been out a long time.
I think Alcaraz is on a hit steak and he’s a new face in tennis. But I do think that the other players will catch on to his game. It’s not like he is just going to roll over everyone.
HOT STREAK
At least you spell Alcazar’s name correct this time
Alcazar is a pop group
How irritating has Patrick become ? I mean what on earth is he having ? Does he even know what he is talking ? How much is he getting paid to utter such nonsense ? Has he stopped coaching tsitsipas now that he has totally stopped speaking abt him n is openly singing novaks praises ? C’mon Novak ..hire him
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sportskeeda.com/amp/tennis/news-when-novak-djokovic-best-even-clay-best-player-world-patrick-mouratoglou
H exaggerated a bit about the clay but on any other surface he’s right
Agree on hard but clay?