TURIN, Italy — Carlos Alcaraz kicked off his quest for a maiden ATP Finals title and the coveted year-end No. 1 ranking with a stellar performance on Sunday, defeating Alex de Minaur in straight sets.
After a rocky start, Alcaraz prevailed 7-6 (5), 6-2 against the seventh-seeded Australian in the opening clash of the prestigious season-ending tournament featuring the top eight male players.
Making his ATP Finals debut later on Sunday, American Ben Shelton is set to face off against two-time champion Alexander Zverev.
As the top seed, Alcaraz finds himself in a fierce battle with defending champion Jannik Sinner for the year-end No. 1 spot. The Spaniard can secure this regardless of Sinner’s performance if he reaches the tournament final.
In the opening set, Alcaraz appeared to have the upper hand, breaking De Minaur to love and threatening to extend his lead to 5-1. However, the Australian mounted a comeback, saving a break point and ultimately taking the game to deuce.
De Minaur responded with a break of his own, pushing the set into a tiebreaker where he initially led 5-3 before Alcaraz staged an impressive rally.
The 22-year-old Alcaraz asserted his dominance in the second set, overcoming an early service drop to win all remaining games and clinch victory with a stunning cross-court backhand on his second match point.
Joining Alcaraz in the Jimmy Connors group are Taylor Fritz, De Minaur, and Lorenzo Musetti, who stepped in for the injured Novak Djokovic.
In the Bjorn Borg group, defending champion Sinner will be up against Zverev, Shelton, and Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime.
The top two teams from each group will progress to the semifinals.
