Carlos Alcaraz Australian Open 2022 Day One | ATP tour

Carlos Alcaraz lived up to his status as the first Grand Slam seed with a dominant 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 victory over Chilean qualifier Alejando Tabilo on Monday’s Day 1 of the Australian Open.

Strikingly dressed in a sleeveless shirt and all-red uniform, the 18-year-old Spaniard first-strike tennis proved too much for Tabilo, who made his second Grand Slam main tournament. In his 2022 league debut, Alcaraz showed off his playing and physique to the fullest after an offseason of marked improvement on both fronts.

I felt really good, he explained in his post-match presser. I didn’t expect this first game to be really good for me. I played the first game of the season at a great level. Really good feelings hope the next games will be the same.

It was a match-up between two players who were at career heights in the ATP rankings, with Alcaraz at number 31 matching his seed and Tabilo at number 135. And the match bridged that gap in the rankings, as Alcaraz advanced comfortably.

At Court 7 at Melbourne Park, the pair traded early breaks before the youngster embarked on a six-game tear to take control away. The Spaniards’ climb was based on his typically intense aggression from the baseline, but he masterfully blended the contact and some well-placed returns as he built the lead.

Alcaraz only got one break point in the game, while he broke seven times in 16 own chances. The one-sided nature of the win underlines his increasing comfort on hard courts.

I’m starting to feel more comfortable on hard court than on clay, he said. I think most tournaments of the year are on hard courts, so you have to be ready.

With his last game in his title run at the Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals in Milan in November, Alcaraz made the perfect start to what could be a great 2022 season. He is entering the new campaign on the heels of a breakthrough year in which he also reached the quarterfinals of the US Open, won his first ATP title (Umag) and broke into the ATP’s Top 40 for the first time. Alcaraz started the 2021 season just inside the Top 150.

This season’s goals include reaching the Top 15 and playing in the Nitto ATP Finals.

It is a very good goal for me, but also so difficult, he told the press.

There are plenty of opportunities in the top quarter of the Australian Open draw due to the absence of Novak Djokovic. Alcaraz will face Dusan Lajovic, who defeated Marton Fucsovics 6-3, 4-6, 6-1, 6-7 (6), 6 -1. Looking a step further, number 7 Matteo Berrettini looms up as a potential opponent in the third round.

Shapovalov survives Djere test
Two weeks after helping Canada to win the 2022 ATP Cup, Denis Shapovalov survived a first-round adventure in Melbourne on Monday against Croat Laslo Djere.

After being two points away from a fifth set, the Canadian advanced into four, 7-6(3), 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3). Djere had the chance to serve for both the first and fourth set, but each time the number 14 set turned him down at the John Cain Arena.

The game looked safe with Shapovalov leading 5-2 in the fourth, but Djere came alive and won eight of the nine runs to get back on service. The Canadian created a match point on the return at 4-5, but quickly trailed 6-5 and needed a break to stay in the set.

I felt like the fourth set was slipping away from me after that set point, Shapovalov said in his on-track interview, but I’m very happy with the result.

The opening set was its own roller coaster. The number 14 dropped the service in the opening game of the match and had to save two set points to force the tie-break. From there it was a one-way street, until Djere reconfirmed himself by winning the first three games of set three.

He did a great dob ​​to come back from two sets to none, Shapovalov added. He changed his tactics, tried to go for it more and was very difficult.

In the end, using what he called the Rafa mentality of fighting for every point, the 22-year-old found just enough big forehands and a big serve to avoid a fifth set. The win marks his first Slam win under new coach Jamie Delgado.

Next up for the Canadian is South Korean Soonwoo Kwon, who passed Holger Rune 3-6, 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2.