Carlos Alcaraz and Miomir Kecmanovic were two of the hottest players on tour heading into their Miami Open quarterfinal matchup on Thursday night. So even though Alcaraz was a considerable favorite, expectations for this contest should have been sky high.
To say that it didn’t disappoint would be a gross understatement.
Alcaraz and Kecmanovic produced what was without question the best match in Miami so far and arguably the best match on the ATP Tour since the epic Australian Open final between Rafael Nadal and Daniil Medvedev.
Two months later, another Spaniard came out on top of another final-set thriller.
Alcaraz was on the brink of defeat a couple of times at the hands of a red-hot Kecmanovic, but the 18-year-old battled to a 6-7(5), 6-3, 7-6(5) victory after two hours and 23 minutes. His reward is a semifinal showdown against defending champion Hubert Hurkacz, who took down top seed Daniil Medevedev earlier in the day.
Fans who stuck around for the nightcap were thoroughly enthralled, and Alcaraz felt it.
“I think the atmosphere that I lived today and this match was unbelievable,” the world No. 16 said. “I think (it was) the best atmosphere that I have lived on these courts, for sure. It was amazing. I enjoyed the match even if it was (a) really close and tough match.
“I think that I’m playing in Spain. It’s unbelievable. I mean, the energy that they push to me — it was crazy. And, yeah, I think without them it would not be possible to get into the semifinal.”
Alcaraz and Hurkacz will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers. The 10th-ranked Pole also finds himself in the doubles final with John Isner, so in singles and doubles combined he is on a 14-match winning streak in Miami dating back to last year’s triumph.
wowzer
My young generation favourite players:
Shapo (love the attacking flow style, unlike Djoko or Med)
Fritz – Used to like this one for a long time, don’t know if it’s GS material, but good luck anyway
Alcaraz – absolutely GREAT, multiple GS winner most probably
Sinner – better version of Raonic. Hope will not disappoint.
Thiem and Tsitsi for the mid tier – expecing to win 2/3 slams each
Sinner-Raonic?!?!?!?!?!?!
Ha ha, Ricky!
Sinner is more like Zverev I feel, hitting hard from the baseline. He certainly moves better than Raonic!
Raonic was a baseliner in his early days
Thiem is hardly a next gen at 28
Raonic was a big server, not moving well compared to Sinner and Zverev.
Shapo may be attacking but he goes for broke and that’s the problem. He’s attacking like Fed but not with the precision that Fed has, so far Shapo is disappointing in my book, his game is hitting or missing, so attacking no doubt but not a smooth flow though.
Heckuva match! Thought I was seeing young Nadal and young Djokovic going at it. Bodes really well for the future. Think maybe even Tennis Channel might give young Alcaraz a little more respect and show us a little more of him and a little less of Gauff?
Isn’t it ironical that both Spain n Serbia are getting their next famous replacement star together?Alcaraz n miomir kecmanovic.Is it really the long due change of guard ?I mean 2022 both nations get it together.
But i somehow don’t like Alcaraz ..god knows why .maybe as he is from Spain n Rafa is from Spain n he will finally replace him n takeover as the talking point
If Alcaraz wins against Hurcacz tomorrow he will be second in the race.
Looks like he will be in the top 5 by the end of the year, if not sooner.
He needs to win the tournament to pass Medvedev in the race.
Yes sorry. My bad.
Sanju, I know how you feel, but he is good for the tour! Very exciting and surely his doggedness reminds me of Rafa!! I don’t mind if he replaces Rafa (in the future) especially given that he’s from Spain. However, he hasn’t beaten Rafa yet though, and I hope he doesn’t, not soon at least, and especially not at RG!! 🤪
Mona..it’s rafas last year’s…so i hope he somehow wins one or 2 more before that..Rafa n djoko will start getting beaten regularly by the next gen..they just cannot defy father time forever …i feel given that the next sensations this year are from Spain n Serbia in Alcaraz n miomir kecmanovic,it surely signals something by tennis God’s .
You dont like him because he’s Rafas replacement but what about his tennis? Its easy on the eye and theres not a huge grunt with every shot , Im hoping his game will evolve and we wont see a Rafa clone – regardless of results bit Im sure he will win RG
Alcaraz is not a “Rafa clone”. Aside from the speed around the court their games aren’t that similar. Alcaraz litters up the stat sheet far more than young Rafa did. The biggest similarity between them is that he models his on-court demeanor after Rafa’s, thankfully. Also Alcaraz is “built”. And Spanish, which makes Rafa very happy. 🙂 I hope Alcaraz does prove to be healthier than Rafa.
I’m hoping to see Alcaraz play Djokovic in Monte Carlo.
Another thing, I don’t hear anyone mentioning about Alcaraz and his physicality!, more so HC! Is no one concerned about his health in terms of injury? Bcoz when it came to Rafa, it was all I was hearing!!!
These celebrated guys already think he may win rg this year ..wonder what Ricky n Cheryl think ? https://mobile.twitter.com/jon_wertheim/status/1509844704556371976
He too young but less physicality than Rafa so far
I dont think so; he’s hitting harder than Rafa from what I have seen so far; he’s as well built as Rafa (though not as physically attractive I have to say!).
He doesn’t grunt after every point but does grunt at times. His game is more developed compared to Rafa’s when Rafa was at the same age as he is now. We have to wait and see how he develops as a player; Rafa is great and dominant on clay, pretty much invincible at his peak; can Alcaraz dominate on any surface the way Rafa does on clay or Djoko on HCs?
Imo, Alcaraz may have it easier in his career compared to Rafa, simply because of the quality of opponents Rafa has to face during his career, fellow big three members at their peak and prime. None of the other younger top players are in the same league as the big three in their prime, so Alcaraz if he continues to progress without much injuries, may win many big titles – slams and Masters.
They probably learnt their lessons after seeing Rafa’s longevity despite all his injuries. They certainly don’t want to look silly again, against another prodigy.
At least most of the comments on there r measured. Trying to avoid jumping on the Alcaraz bandwagon!! But don’t think Rafa or Nole or the other hopefuls r not watching!! He’s making rivals and even frenemies FAST!! 😂
He isn’t ready to beat either Rafa or Nole in a slam unless they are compromised by injury or, in Novax’s case not there because of the vaccine mandate.
He can probably beat anyone else given the rest of the field are so erratic.
It’s pretty unlikely he will do that well at wimby without a serve.
It’s going to be interesting to see if Tsitsi picks up his game for clay.
Another thing about Alcaraz, how will be handle the pressure if say he wins Miami, which is pretty likely, and then everyone starts talking him up? We have seen other young guys buckle under the pressure. Maybe he will start getting nervous and lose rhythm…
Yeah, agreed! I smile when ppl r anointing his path to #1 in a few years and winning multiple slams in quick time, blah, blah, blah! But I want to c him winning consistently first before I go that far. He is in fire, no doubt, but let’s c what he has to offer in terms of consistency and longevity!! Case in point, c how Meddy is struggling to attain and keep the #1 ranking and Novak is not even playing!!!
So Mats Wilander has said that as long as Novax plays the 3 clay masters he’s the fave at RG!!?😠😠😠😠
Why exactly?! Rafa’s record there is way better than Novax’s and he was impeded by injury last year.
Get lost Mats!!
He is such an ass! He has a long history of disrespecting Rafa. Rafa is the favorite at RG. Case closed. His record speaks for itself.
Wilander should be ashamed of himself.
It’s Nativenewyorker. The whole name didn’t post fir some reason.
He could be impeded by injury this year or lack of match play? Maybe Nole would then be the favourite?
Every match he commentates on, he endlessly references Fed. Beyond irritating!
amy,
I agree. The kid is not going to take out Rafa or Novak in a slam. He seems to be the most consistent at this time. Tsitsipas has been all over the place. Zverev at least got to the quarterfinals here. Meddy seems to be struggling somewhat. He and Novak are very close in the rankings. Novak has to defend a lot of points from last year. So Meddy should get another crack at #1. He was the best player for a while. But then Rafa came back and was on fire and now this kid Alcazar.
I really try not to get caught up I’m the hype with the next young star in men’s tennis. I have seen too many guys come along and shine brightly, only to skip into obscurity. Let’s see what happens.
I was rooting for M. Kecmanovic what an amazing player both are and the match was wild.
Kecmanovic had his chances but just missed them, probably too nervous. In fact he could have won the match in the TB!
Perhaps this is Alcaraz’s destiny, ie winning his first Masters here?(he beat Hurkacz in the SF and Hurkacz, like Kecmanovic, had his chances too but didn’t take them!).
If Kecmanovic can continue playing great like the way he does here, I think he will go up the rankings very quickly.
You’re right.
Miami has a strong Spanish fan base, so no surprise that this tournament could be his first major. It was likely to be on hardcourt before clay, as well.
Alcaraz is exactly what the sport needs right now. Will be interesting to see how he goes against Djokovic and even Federer when he’s back on tour.
Yeah, and he won’t need to face a world number one in the final, unlike Rafa in 2005; Rafa had to beat Fed in the final and in a best of five sets scenario; had it be best of three, maybe Rafa would have won his first Masters there.
Whether Alcaraz can be the next big thing or not we have to wait and see (though I think he most likely will be). We have seen promising youngsters these past few years, first Zverev, followed by Shapo, Tsitsipas, FAA, Sinner and now Alcaraz. None of them have won a slam so far, and they are all promising young players so fingers crossed that Alcaraz is the real deal this time.
Anyway, Alcaraz’s presence may be a wake up call for the young top players; they have to do better than what they are doing now or else….So, yes, Alcaraz is what tennis needs now, when the likes of Rafa/Djoko/Fed are nearing their retirement and the other young players are taking their own sweet time to become slam winners.