Carlos Alcaraz makes winning return from injury at Argentina Open in three-set win over Laslo Djere
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Updated 16/02/2023 at 08:32 GMT
Carlos Alcaraz mixed brutal groundstrokes with clever drop shots as he downed Laslo Djere in three sets in Buenos Aires. The Spaniard had not played competitively in over three months, but showed his fighting instinct had not vanished as he shrugged off losing the second set to come through. He will face Dusan Lajovic in the quarter-finals in the Argentine capital.
Highlights: Alcaraz makes triumphant season debut
Carlos Alcaraz made a winning return from injury as he battled past Laslo Djere at the Argentina Open.
The Spaniard, who had not played competitively since November, came through 6-2 4-6 6-2 to book a quarter-final with another Serbian, Dusan Lajovic.
"It's a great feeling to win again," Alcaraz said. "It's been a long time for me with no competition, with no matches, just recovering. Finally I got my first win of 2023."
Alcaraz has slipped to world No. 2 during his injury lay-off, with Novak Djokovic returning to the summit of the ATP rankings following his stunning triumph at the Australian Open.
In a raucous atmosphere on the Buenos Aires clay, the 19-year-old started brightly, breaking twice in the first set and proving impenetrable on serve to take it.
But the rustiness began to show in the second as he offered up seven break opportunities, with Djere eventually capitalising to draw level as Alcaraz faltered when serving to stay in the set.
That proved only a minor blip for Alcaraz, who delighted the crowd with his racquet skills between points, as he continued to marry explosive baseline hitting with deft drop shots to cruise through the decider.
"I'm really happy [in Buenos Aires]. I didn't expect such a great crowd, a great atmosphere behind me," he added.
"So I just can say thank you to all the fans here in Buenos Aires for the warm welcome that I received in this first match and I hope to keep going with this energy."
Britain’s Cameron Norrie survived a huge scare against world No. 191 Facundo Diaz Acosta to reach the last eight.
Home favourite Diaz Acosta served for the match at 5-3 in the second set, but his game deserted him as Norrie won four games on the spin to force a decider.
Diaz Acosta regained his composure and took the final set to a tie-breaker, getting an early mini break to lead 4-1, but Norrie was again superior in the biggest points as the second seed won 4-6 7-5 7-6(6).
Norrie will next face another Argentinian, Tomas Martin Etcheverry, in the quarter-finals.
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