Until the end, Jan-Lennard Struff will have proven that he was not there by chance. The German, 65th in the world and lucky loser, took a set from Carlos Alcaraz and pushed the Spaniard to his last limits in the final of the Masters 1000 in Madrid. But in the end, it was the younger of the two who won in three sets (6-4, 3-6, 6-3).
Alcaraz, 20 years old for two days, thus won the tenth title of his young career, his fourth in Masters 1000, and his fourth of the season, after Buenos Aires, Indian Wells and Barcelona.
One game away in Rome from world No. 1
Three weeks before Roland-Garros (May 28-June 11), the young Spaniard has accumulated 19 victories in twenty matches on clay in 2023. On European ocher, he is even undefeated: from Barcelona to Madrid, he has just align eleven successes. His only defeat on the surface dates back to February, in the final in Rio, against Briton Cameron Norrie.
“Carlitos” finds himself very close to becoming world No. throne of world tennis at the end of the Italian tournament. Alcaraz had not played in Rome a year ago, when Djokovic won there.