By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Wednesday August 10, 2022
Carlos Alcaraz kicked off his North American hard court swing on Wednesday at the National Bank Open in Toronto, and fell at the first hurdle.
The second-seeded Spaniard let a match point slip in the second set and eventually lost to 25-year-old American Tommy Paul in a barnburner, 6-7(4), 7-6(7), 6-3.
Alcaraz blew a 4-1 lead in the third set and eventually failed to convert a set point in the second-set tiebreak.
Paul, who earned his third top-10 win of the season, edged out to a 4-1 lead in the decider and stood his ground when Alcaraz rallied late.
Serving at 2-5 the Spaniard brilliantly saved four match points and stayed alive in the match. He earned a break point with Paul serving for the match at 5-3, but Paul stood tall to lock up the victory in three hours and 20 minutes.
“I just felt like I was in his service games,” Paul explained of his first career meeting with the 19-year-old Spaniard. “In the second set I felt like I could break. So I knew that if I just got one break back; I didn’t expect to get two breaks back and serve for the second and then get broken – it never goes how you think it’s going to go but I felt like I was playing comfortable tennis overall, I stuck to the game plan and played well.”
Paul advances to face either Marin Cilic or Karen Khachanov in the round of 16 at Montreal. It has been an excellent season for the American – he is now 30-16 for the year. Prior to 2022, Paul owned a 2-7 record against the Top-10 – he had recorded a 2-7 record against such competition before his career.
Alcaraz drops to 42-8 on the season. He chose to play on clay in Hamburg and Umag, and will hope to pick up some matches next week in Cincinnati as he continues his preparation for the 2022 US Open.