Second-seeded Carlos Alcaraz faced a tough challenge before defeating Italian Lorenzo Sonego 6-4, 6-7, 6-3, 7-6 in the Australian Open on Thursday, progressing to the third round on a day of epic matches. After the victories of his fellow seeded players Casper Ruud, Alexander Zverev, and Cameron Norrie in five sets against lower-ranked opponents, the 20-year-old Spanish player encountered difficulties against the unseeded Sonego and the wind. Alcaraz stated, "I’m really happy with my performance today. I think we both played really well and with great intensity, and the match was a bit difficult due to the wind and the sun."
The two-time Grand Slam champion, who missed last year's tournament due to injury, won the first set by breaking his opponent’s serve once, but in the next set, he lost his serve to Sonego in the ninth game and failed to recover after trailing 5-1 in the tiebreak. The Italian, currently ranked 46th in the world, had won the only previous encounter between the players in 2021 when Alcaraz was outside the top fifty. However, the 28-year-old Sonego was overwhelmed by strong forehands from his opponent, leading to the loss of the third set.
In the fourth set, where both players were at their best, Sonego lost his serve early on, but Alcaraz elevated his game to score points in the tiebreak and secure his place in the third round. Alcaraz, who will face Chinese player Shang Juncheng, a wild card entrant, in the next round, said, "It was tough to give your best, but we tried to stay at that level the whole time even if I lost the second set."
