Carlos Alcaraz has reached the Wimbledon semi-finals for the first time in his career after defeating Holger Rune in straight sets 7-6 6-4 6-4 on Centre Court on Wednesday evening. The World number one gave another dazzling display to the crowd against another hungry youngster to strengthen his title bid.
It was a good match between two exciting young players who are set to light the Grand Slam stage for many years to come. Although the scoreline would suggest it was a routine victory for Alcaraz, Rune did make it difficult for him at times but Alcaraz continues to show us why he is viewed as the sport’s next big thing. He oozes a confidence far beyond his years and he backs it up with his execution. He is quite sensational.
You couldn’t take your eyes off the first set as both players battled valiantly to get a foothold in the match. It was clear that the two friends had a history together because there were times where they could read exactly where the other was going to go with their shots. Alcaraz edged the first set and although Rune pushed him all the way, he showed his credentials as a Wimbledon champion to take control of the tie break.
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Rune wasn’t downhearted by losing the opening set and he made sure Alcaraz had to do even more work in the second. The Dane pulled off some excellent shots to stump his opponent but Alcaraz showed his resilience and put himself in the driving seat to take the second set 6-4.
Alcaraz may have been two sets to the good but Rune was giving an excellent account of himself on Centre Court. The crowd were loving the show the two 20-year-olds were treating them to and this is a fixture they might get used to seeing at Wimbledon. But it was clear that Alcaraz is currently ahead of Rune in his development at this stage and having already tasted Grand Slam glory, as well as being the number one seed will do that.
Bearing in mind this is Rune’s second appearance at the All England Lawn Tennis Club as opposed to Alcaraz’s third, and on his last outing he was eliminated in the first round. So this has been a huge marker of his progress on grass. And had he lined up against another opponent he could’ve perhaps made it to the last four but Alcaraz’s quality currently trumps his.
The Spanish prodigy has already surpassed his previous best finish in SW19 which was reaching the fourth round last summer. A year can often be viewed as either a short or long time but whatever it is in Alcaraz’s case, he has evolved so much on the grass court, the surface of which he has played the least amount of games, but he is adapting greatly.
Rune will also continue to grow and this latest experience will help equip him for another crack next year, and he will have picked up a few fans from his performances over the past 10 days.
As for Alcaraz, the journey continues and he will face Daniil Medvedev in Friday’s semi-finals after the Russian defeated Chris Eubanks in five sets, bringing an end to the American’s amazing run which has been the story of the Championships.
