Carlos Alcaraz began his Paris Masters campaign with a 7-6(4), 6-3 victory over Alex Michelsen, recovering from an uncertain start to take control in the second set. The win also extended his unbeaten record against players younger than him: he has now won all 16 of those matches on the ATP Tour.
Michelsen has yet to win a set against Alcaraz, having lost all 12 they have contested. The American made the Spaniard work in the opening set, which Alcaraz secured in a tiebreak, before the seven-time Grand Slam champion pulled away in the second.
“I broke early, but I made a couple of mistakes,” Alcaraz said. He praised Michelsen’s solid baseline play and said he was pleased with his performance and how he felt on court. Alcaraz, who won the title in Vienna the previous Sunday, said he was looking forward to playing again the next day.
His next opponent is Matteo Berrettini, who reached the third round by beating Frenchman Ugo Humbert 7-6(3), 7-5 in one hour and 46 minutes. Alcaraz has won three of their four previous meetings.
After the match, Alcaraz wrote “Paris I missed you!” on a camera lens. He had missed the French Open in Paris the previous May because of a wrist injury.
Sources: Tennis365.