IMAGE: Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz reacts after winning the second set during his quarter-final against France’s Arthur Fils at the ATP Masters 1000 Monte Carlo Masters, at Monte Carlo Country Club, France, on Friday. Photograph: Manon Cruz/Reuters
Carlos Alcaraz huffed and puffed his way into the Monte Carlo Masters semi-finals with a 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 victory against local favourite Arthur Fils, who will be ruing his missed chances as holder Stefanos Tsitsipas was knocked out on Friday.
Four-times Grand Slam champion Alcaraz had to sweat but made the most of his opponent’s errors in the key moments to set up a semi-final against fellow Spaniard Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who beat Australia’s Alexei Popyrin in straight sets.
Lorenzo Musetti recovered from a shaky start to beat sixth seed Tsitsipas 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 after the Greek served a handful of double faults, unable to finish it off when he had the upper hand.
The Italian 13th seed will play Australian Alex de Minaur, who wasted no time downing Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov, who lost 6-0, 6-0 after 44 minutes with a staggering 23 unforced errors.
Fils made a blistering start against world number three Alcaraz, surging to a 3-0 lead with two early breaks.
IMAGE: Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti celebrates winning his quarter-final against Greece’s Stefanos Tsitsipas. Photograph: Manon Cruz/Reuters
Alcaraz fought back to retrieve one break and had four chances to level in the fourth game, but Fils held firm. The Spaniard eventually drew level at 4-4, only for Fils to break once more and move ahead 5-4 in a rollercoaster set.
The Frenchman wrapped it up after saving another two break points.
He wasted seven break points, however, in the second set, and Alcaraz levelled the tie with a superb lob to steal Fils’s serve in the 12th game.
Second seed Alcaraz remained inconsistent and dropped serve once again in the third game of the decider.
But experience eventually told as the 21-year-old broke back and got another break in the eighth game to the frustration of Fils, who smashed his racket on the clay.
IMAGE: Australia’s Alex De Minaur in action against Bulgaria’s Grigor Dimitrov. Photograph: Manon Cruz/Reuters
World number 15 Fils could not regain his poise in the final game, allowing Alcaraz to finish it off routinely.
“I believe that true champions find the right level when necessary. Of course, I’d like to be able to play my best tennis from the first point to the last,” said Alcaraz.
“But we played for almost two hours 30 minutes, and that’s the hardest thing in tennis: maintaining your best level over such a long period.
“So, when necessary, it’s good to get back to your best shots. And then sometimes, in certain sequences, the opponent is better than you and you have to accept that and keep fighting.”
