The youngster and designated Iberian successor to Rafael Nadal defeated the 35-year-old veteran on Friday in the quarterfinals 6:2,1:6,6:3. The 19-year-old since Thursday will now meet the top seeded Novak Djokovic in the semifinals. The Serb lost to the Pole Hubert Hurkacz 6:3,6:4. The remaining two quarter-finals were scheduled for the evening.
A year ago Nadal defeated Alcaraz 6:1,6:2 in Madrid, but the man from Murcia is now in the top ten. In addition, 13-time French Open winner Nadal is making his comeback tournament after being sidelined for six weeks with a stress fracture in a rib. It was only the second defeat of the season for the Austrian Open winner. Before the third duel with his compatriot, Nadal had pushed him into the role of favourite, he still leads 2-1 head-to-head.
Djokovic took a step closer to his top form when he won, and he was eagerly awaiting a comparison with Alcaraz. “He’s living his dream, isn’t he? He’s playing impressive tennis and has improved so much. It’s going to be a good match,” said Djokovic before Saturday’s hit. The promised one had to process his first win against his idol for the time being. “It means a lot to me,” said Alcaraz. “The hard work I put into it every day is paying off today.”
Source: Nachrichten
