Munar and Davidovich, sanctioned at the worst time, say goodbye in five sets
MADRID, 29 Jun. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz reached the third round of the Wimbledon tournament on Wednesday, beating (6-4, 7-6(0), 6-3) the Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor, brave and determined as the reigning champion, Novak Djokovic, marches , while the also Spanish Jaume Munar and Alejandro Davidovich said goodbye.
Alcaraz, who is playing for the second time at the All England Tennis Club, signed the third round for the first time in the English ‘big’ with a determined performance, much looser than in his five-set debut against the German Struff. As he acknowledged in the interview at the foot of the track, the Murcian felt more his game, true to himself, and carried out a serious game in which he gave little to his rival.
The 19-year-old from El Palmar, champion of four tournaments in 2022 and one of the favorites in London despite being in his second participation, gave up only one of the six break balls he faced. It was in the third set, where at times the pupil of Juan Carlos Ferrero saw himself with the work done ahead of time.
The first set was scored by the Spaniard with more deep court play and a ‘break’ in the ninth game. In the second, the Dutchman changed to a more aggressive strategy, going up to the net, but it didn’t work for him either. Yes until sudden death, a tiebreaker in which Alcaraz raised the level and made it 7-0.
He had no choice but to be desperate for Griekspoor, more after the 2-0 against the start. The Murcian then lost the good dynamic but saved a second ‘break’ to not give wings to his rival. Next, Alcaraz struck with a new lead that put him on the way to the third round, where he will meet German Oscar Otte.
For his part, the first seed, Serbian Novak Djokovic, also got into the third round, who had little trouble getting rid of Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis in three sets 6-1, 6-4, 6-2 in two hours. . The one from Belgrade, who will now face his compatriot Miomir Kecmanovic, dominated the match at all times, giving up only one break ball in the last game, and losing only 17 points with his serve.
As for the Spanish interests in the men’s draw, the day marked the end of the tournament for Munar and Davidovich, who fell to the Englishman Cameron Norrie (5-4, 3-6, 5-7, 6-0, 6-2 ) and Czech Jiri Vesely (6-3, 5-7, 6-7(2), 6-3, 7-6(7)). For Munar, looking for his first third round in a ‘Grand Slam’, the battle was very long after going up 1-2 in sets.
Norrie reacted and the Balearic could not follow the British gale, under breath in addition to the stands. For Davidovich it was even more frustrating because, after fighting again five sets like against Hurkacz, he yielded in the final tiebreaker sanctioned by the racket hit to a ball with a point, already carrying another warning for ‘inappropriate language’, which meant the victory of Vesely.