Madrid Open 2021: 3 things that stood out in Rafael Nadal's win over Carlos Alcaraz
Top seed and five-time champion Rafael Nadal brushed aside his 18-year old compatriot Carlos Alcaraz 6-1, 6-2 in the second round of the Madrid Open on Wednesday. Nadal needed 1 hour and 15 minutes to finish the match, and will next play Alexei Popyrin in the Round of 16.
Carlos Alcaraz, widely considered to be one of the most talented teenagers in the tennis world, couldn't match the guile and accuracy of his legendary countryman. However, the teenager would have undoubtedly learned some valuable lessons from the match.
On that note, here's a look at three things which stood out in the second-round encounter:
#1 Carlos Alcaraz was too error-prone
Carlos Alcaraz, who celebrated his 18th birthday on Wednesday, was probably overawed by the occasion and struggled to stay with Rafael Nadal in the early going. He repeatedly found the net with his forehand, and finished with 13 unforced errors in the first set.
Alcaraz has immense power off both wings though, and he more than held his own in the crosscourt backhand exchanges. However, his shot selection often left a lot to be desired.
Alcaraz lost his serve five times in the match, with unforced errors being responsible for about half of those breaks. The 18-year-old would have to try and be a bit more patient in his upcoming matches on clay. He tried to outhit and overpower Rafael Nadal on Wednesday, but that is not always the right strategy.
#2 Rafael Nadal was relentless as usual in his approach
Rafael Nadal, the champion claycourter, didn't take much time to gauge Carlos Alcaraz's game. The 34-year-old was in his element from the get-go; he powered six winners in the first set alone, and committed only eight unforced errors all match.
Nadal recognized very quickly that his opponent was finding it difficult to control his groundstrokes, so he kept hitting his topspin-heavy forehand with depth. Not surprisingly, the weight of shot was too much for Alcaraz to handle.
Nadal also hit some ferocious down-the-line forehands, the pick of them being the one which blitzed past a helpless Alcaraz in the first set.
#3 Carlos Alcaraz improved marginally in the 2nd set, but it wasn't enough
There was a marginal improvement in Carlos Alcaraz's performance during the second half of the match, particularly on his serve. But the Spanish teenager continued making unforced errors (ending with 28 of them) off the ground, which made things relatively straightforward for Rafael Nadal.
Alcaraz started to hit the ball deeper in the second set, in a bid to avoid dumping it into the net. But he ended up over-correcting, and some of his shots sailed well beyond the baseline.
Nadal on the other hand kept his calm, never letting himself commit too many mistakes. And that was enough to help him run away with the match.