Carlos Alcaraz tested by Laslo Djere as he makes winning return – ‘Finally I got my first win of 2023’

Shahida Jacobs
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Carlos Alcaraz plays a shot

It was far from straightforward, but Carlos Alcaraz tasted victory for the first time in three months as he held off Laslo Djere in the second round of the Argentina Open.

After missing the season-ending ATP Finals due to an abdominal injury sustained at the Paris Masters, Alcaraz was also forced to skip the Australian Open due to a hamstring problem he picked up in training and, with Novak Djokovic going on to win the season-opening Grand Slam, he slipped from No 1 to No 2 in the ATP Rankings.

But he finally opened his 2023 account on Wednesday as he defeated Djere 6-2, 4-6, 6-2 in just over two hours on the red dirt in Buenos Aires.

“It’s a great feeling to win again,” the Spaniard said in his post-match interview. “It’s been a long time for me with no competition, with no matches, just recovering. Finally I got my first win of 2023.”

The 19-year-old broke in games three and seven of the opening set, but the second set was a mixed affair from both players. Djere saved eight break points and Alcaraz six before the Serbian broke at the seventh time of asking to take the match to a decider.

World No 2 Alcaraz, though, upped his performance and broke in the opening game before a second break in game seven all but sealed the match.

“I’m really happy [in Buenos Aires],” the teenager, who is now 40-11 on clay, said after his victory. “I didn’t expect such a great crowd, a great atmosphere behind me. So I just can say thank you to all the fans here in Buenos Aires for the warm welcome that I received in this first match and I hope to keep going with this energy.”

Up next for Alcaraz is another Serbian after Dusan Lajovic defeated fellow qualifier Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-3, 6-1.

Second seed Cameron Norrie also needed three sets to reach the quarter-final with the British No 1 securing a 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (8-6) win over local wildcard Facunda Diaz Acosta.

World No 12 will face another Argentine in Tomas Martin Etcheverry – who defeated Roberto Carballes Baena 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 – for a place in the last four of the ATP 250 tournament.

READ MORE: Carlos Alcaraz explains why he admires ‘God-like’ Novak Djokovic as he looks to regain No 1 ranking

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