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Carlos Alcaraz admits he was 'in trouble' in battling win over Hubert Hurkacz in Rotterdam Open semi-final
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Updated 09/02/2025 at 17:48 GMT
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Hubert Hurkacz had Carlos Alcaraz 4-1 down in the first set of their Rotterdam Open semi-final on Saturday night, but the 21-year-old Spaniard eventually turned the match around to claim an impressive 6-4 6-7(5) 6-3 victory against his Polish opponent. Alcaraz will play Alex de Minaur in Sunday's final after the Australian defeated Italy's Mattia Bellucci 6-1 6-2 in his final-four encounter.
Carlos Alcaraz
Image credit: Getty Images
Carlos Alcaraz struggled to defeat a battling Hubert Hurkacz 6-4 6-7(5) 6-3 and eventually set up a Rotterdam Open final with Alex de Minaur.
The Spaniard saved three break points in the first set when he found himself in trouble early on, but rallied to take the first set.
Alcaraz was 4-1 down but stunned his opponent by winning five consecutive games, only for the Polish player to hold his nerve and take the second set.
The 21-year-old Spaniard was up 5-4 in the tie-break but could not push through his advantage for a straight-sets victory.
Alcaraz then dominated in the decisive set, winning 12 of the first 13 points and going 3-0 clear in the process, and he was able to hold off Hurkacz’s final efforts to close out the match.
"Great level, great match, that’s all I could say," said Alcaraz on what he told Hurkacz after the match’s conclusion.
"At 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."
Despite his victory, Alcaraz admitted he was struggling in the match's early stages.
He conceded: "I was a bit in trouble, I guess. 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."
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The win exteded Alcaraz's perfect record against Hurkacz to 4-0 as he qualified for his first hard court final. Sunday’s match will also be his first final of the 2025 season.
Earlier in the day’s play, De Minaur had an easier time in his semi-final, beating qualifier Mattia Bellucci 6-1 6-2.
Watch and stream the 2025 tennis season on discovery+
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