Carlos Alcaraz takes out Hubert Hurkacz in high-level contest

Top seed Carlos Alcaraz was delighted after defeating Hubert Hurkacz in the semifinal of the ABN AMRO Open on Saturday. The Spaniard registered a 6-4, 6-7(5), 6-3 win in Rotterdam to qualify for the final clash.

Both Alcaraz and Hurkacz played at a very high level from the get-go but it was the former who had the final laugh. The Spaniard conceded a 3-0 lead in the first set but bounced back to win the next six out of seven games and thus took the opener.

The Pole took the second set in the tiebreaker but Alcaraz was able to close the match in two hours and 21 minutes.

“Great level, great match, that’s all I could say,” said Alcaraz, when asked about his exchange with Hurkacz at the net after match point. “In that moment he was a bit tired. I know his frustrations at the end of the match, so I couldn’t say so much about it. I’m just really happy. I think we both played at such a high level, for the people as well. It was a great match.”

“I was a bit in trouble, I guess,” said Alcaraz of his early deficit in the first set. “I just felt every ball until the end. That’s all I was thinking about, and I knew that I was going to have my chances.

“His level at that time was unbelievable, really high, so I knew that it was about time. So I’m really happy to have been able to fight every ball and to save the break points that I had to [save] to not be 1-5 down. I’m just happy to be able to do it and in the end, it paid off.”

Alcaraz will face Alex de Minaur in the summit clash on Sunday.