World no. 2 Carlos Alcaraz passed the first obstacle at the Cincinnati Masters.Like at Roland Garros, the Spaniard had to dig deep against Damir Dzumhur, earning a 6-1, 2-6, 6-3 victory in an hour and 41 minutes.
Carlos made a reliable start before losing ground in set number two. The runner-up from two years ago forged an early advantage in the third set and grabbed two breaks to seal the deal and emerge at the top.
The favorite claimed ten points more and made the difference behind the first serve. Alcaraz faced three break points and suffered as many breaks. He stole 46%of the return points and provided five breaks from ten opportunities.
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They sprayed over 80 unforced errors. The Bosnian took a slim advantage in service winners, and the Spaniard responded with a fine performance from the baseline and at the net.
World no. 2 was off to a great start. He created break chances in all four return games of the first set and delivered three straight breaks for 6-1 in 28 minutes. Damir bounced back in the second set.
He provided four fine holds and clinched breaks in games three and five. The Bosnian forged a massive lead and clinched the set 6-2 on his serve to gain a boost and force a decider.
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The Spaniard made a fresh start and secured a break in game four for a 4-1 advantage. He wasted a game point in game seven and lost serve to bring Dzumhur back to the positive side.
The Bosnian hit a costly double fault in game eight, losing serve again and falling 5-3 behind. Carlos served for the win at 5-3 and welcomed the rival's backhand error to seal the deal and make a winning start.
