Rain halts Alcaraz, who was on the verge of victory against Monfils

Just a few points away, Carlos Alcaraz stayed from a victory that, in any case, will have to wait. With 6-4 in the first set and a 6-6, 3-1 in favor of Gael Monfils in the second set tiebreak, that's how the second round battle of ATP Cincinnati 2024 stood, at which point the rain interrupted the match to postpone it to the next day, a day forecasted to bring more rain.

Even though the match started with little baseline exchanges and both players holding strong on serve, Carlitos took just a few minutes to extend the points and take the lead, also helped by Gael's double faults. With Juan Carlos Ferrero's instructions from the box encouraging his protégé to move forward on the court, even if he made mistakes. Despite Alcaraz getting carried away trying to dominate with forehand or backhand, that early advantage put him in control of the first set.

Monfils improved his game, chasing his opponent closely, though it wasn't enough to challenge for the first set yet. With slices, drop shots, and net approaches, Alcaraz kept accumulating points on his side, as long as the court speed allowed him to play more than two shots in an exchange. All of the Frenchman's hopes relied on his serve, an aspect that improved in the second set.

Monfils seizes an opportunity

The first troubles for the Spaniard came in the sixth game of the second set, where he saved triple break point and one more to maintain equality in the score, but getting a warning from a Monfils who hadn't given up at all, gradually increasing his pace in each game. After overcoming a minor physical scare, Gael showed more strength, trying to hold on to that good streak to extend the match.

Serves once again dominated in the final stretch of the second set, where tension grew due to the importance of each point. With nerves of steel, Carlitos saved a set point against him, pushing for a tiebreak where Monfils took an early lead. With 3-1 on the scoreboard, rain intervened to pause the match. After an hour filled with uncertainty, the tournament finally confirmed the match was postponed to the following day, so this upcoming Friday, we will know who will be the opponent of Holger Rune in the round of 16.

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, La lluvia frena a un Alcaraz que estaba a puntos de la victoria contra Monfils