World number one Carlos Alcaraz felt “relieved” after he battled back from a set down to edge out Taylor Fritz in a thrilling contest and close on a place in the knockout stages at the ATP Finals in Turin.
With his victory, Alcaraz also moved within one win of securing the end-of-year world number one ranking in his battle with Jannik Sinner for that honour.
American sixth seed Fritz, the 2024 runner-up, matched Alcaraz for much of their two hours and 48 minutes together on court.
But the Spaniard, as he so often does, found another gear to turn the match around and complete a 6-7 (2-7) 7-5 6-3 win.
“It was tight. I felt I was running more than him, struggling more than him,” Alcaraz said.
“I was really relieved after the win because of everything I went through physically. I’m really happy that I found a way to come back and find his weaknesses.”
On being one win away from clinching the year-end world number one ranking, Alcaraz added: “I try not to think about it. It is going to be a really big match for me [against Lorenzo Musetti in his final group game] and I will try not to let nerves give me a bad time.”
Both players were seeking consecutive victories, after Alcaraz beat Australian Alex de Minaur and Fritz also won in straight sets against Italy’s Musetti.
Victory for De Minaur against Musetti in Tuesday’s other match in the Jimmy Connors Group would confirm Alcaraz’s place in the last four before his final round-robin match against the Italian.
