The Nitto ATP Finals’ Day 2 gave a huge surprise. Carlos Alcaraz – considered as the second favorite to win behind Jannik Sinner – was defeated by Casper Ruud in straight sets. The world number 3 played one of the worst matches of his entire season, showing that he still has a lot of difficulty finding solutions on this surface.
Sealed with a wink 😉@CasperRuud98 #NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/fL0mnPubRk
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) November 11, 2024
The 4-time Grand Slam champion won only one game in the first set, while there was a small reaction from the Spaniard in the second set. The former world No. 1 went ahead 5-2 and was two points from the set, but his level dropped right at the decisive moment and Ruud won five consecutive games. Casper’s victory over Carlitos is a truly shocking surprise, considering that the Norwegian’s results after the US Open had been disastrous. Ruud was considered the weakest player in these ATP Finals, having qualified mainly thanks to Novak Djokovic’s forfeit.
A shocking loss
This shocking loss puts Alcaraz in serious difficulty. Carlos also lost his first match in Turin to Sascha Zverev last year, but qualified for the semi-finals. The 21-year-old from Murcia will face the loser of the match between Zverev and Rublev on Wednesday. The Spanish ace seemed really far from his best condition, as demonstrated by his attitude throughout the match. The former world number 1 may have been conditioned by a flu virus, which would have struck him shortly after his arrival in Turin.
Carlos Alcaraz looks like he’s still fighting a bit of a cold in Turin. 🤧
— The Tennis Letter (@TheTennisLetter) November 11, 2024
At the same time, Alcaraz showed that he still has many limits in indoor conditions. The 4-time Grand Slam champion is unable to adapt his game to this surface and his results prove it. In an interview with Eurosport, Mats Wilander had expressed many doubts about Carlitos’ chances in Turin: “There’s a lot of doubt with Carlos Alcaraz. Even though he won two majors in the French Open and Wimbledon, the final of the Olympics is not that bad, even though everybody’s trying to make it out as ‘he didn’t win the Olympics’. That would have been an amazing year.
Casper Ruud & Carlos Alcaraz, ATP Finals 2024© Stream screenshot
“Why I like Carlos Alcaraz in this situation is that, in the last few weeks, he’s lost to players that you scratch your head and go, ‘whoa, how does he lose to this player?’ Somehow, even though you’re No 3 in the world and one of the most electric, promising, fan-friendly players, everything that Alcaraz has to deal with, I think he gets fired up and has not much to lose when he plays against the top eight in the world.
Compared to playing against a guy who’s ranked No 50 in the world, he can’t really get that excited. So I’m not worried about Alcaraz because his opposition is the best in the world. No one puts more pressure on Carlos Alcaraz’s service games than Sasha Zverev. And I think it has to do, obviously, with Zverev’s serve. It has to do with him making a lot of returns. It has to do with playing indoors, where the short drop shots of Alcaraz skid a little bit, and Zverev can get to them.” The 21-year-old from Murcia will have to raise his level a lot if he wants to qualify for the semi-finals.
Ruud shone in Turin
Ruud – on the other hand – achieved a victory that no one could have imagined, without losing a single set. The Norwegian – who reached the final in this tournament two years ago – played the best match of his season and took advantage of his rival’s bad day. “I knew he was dealing with a bit of a cold. I saw him sniffling in the back area and with a tissue for his nose, so that’s a sign that maybe physically he won’t be necessarily at 100 per cent. Of course, that is sad, and not good for him, but at the same time it is part of the game” – Casper said after the match.
Sending it 🆙@CasperRuud98 with an inch perfect lob 🙌#NittoATPFinals pic.twitter.com/hztwhhW5wy
— Tennis TV (@TennisTV) November 11, 2024
He continued: “I knew it coming in. I tried to make him play rallies and do my best, but it’s not easy because when you kind of know that someone is not 100 per cent, maybe you get stressed yourself. You think, ‘This is a really big chance for me to maybe try to win’. So I just tried to stay in my world, the moment, and luckily I got a good start. I got a break early and kept it, and in the second set I was able to turn it around with some good tennis at the end.” In the next match, Ruud will face the winner of the clash between Sascha Zverev and Andrey Rublev.