Carlos Alcaraz Defeats Alexander Zverev For Madrid Title

Carlos Alcaraz made history once again Sunday at the Mutua Madrid Open, dispatching World No. 3 Alexander Zverev 6-3, 6-1 to capture his second ATP Masters 1000 title of the season.

The Spaniard lit up the Manolo Santana Stadium with his variety of shots and athleticism as he overpowered Zverev with his relentless hitting to earn a seventh straight Top 10 win and Tour-leading fourth title of the year.

Alcaraz, who did not face a break point in a dominant performance against the German, will rise to second in the Pepperstone ATP Race To Turin on Monday as he aims to make his debut at the prestigious Nitto ATP Finals in November.

With his 62-minute victory, the 19-year-old is the second-youngest player to win two Masters 1000 titles, after triumphing in Miami in March. Rafael Nadal captured crowns in Monte Carlo and Rome in 2005 when he was 18.

In a dream week on home soil, the seventh seed also became the first player to eliminate Nadal and Novak Djokovic at the same clay-court event. It is the first time since David Nalbandian in Madrid in 2007 that a player has defeated three top four stars at a Masters 1000 event.

Nalbandian beat Djokovic, Nadal and Roger Federer in the Spanish capital when the tournament was played on hard.

“I want to congratulate Carlitos. Right now you are the best player in the world,” Zverev said during the trophy ceremony. “It is great for tennis that we have such a new superstar that is going to win so many Grand Slams, that is going to be World No. 1 and I think is going to win this tournament many more times.”

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Just 12 months ago, Alcaraz was ranked at No. 120 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings when he made his Madrid debut. However, after soaring to five tour-level titles since, he will climb to a career-high No. 6 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings on Monday.

Alongside Masters 1000 titles in Miami and Madrid, the 2021 Intesa Sanpaolo Next Gen ATP Finals champion has trophies in Umag, Rio de Janeiro and Barcelona in the past year, meaning he is the youngest five-time titlist on Tour since Nadal clinched seven crowns by 19 in 2004-05. Alcaraz, who has won his past 10 matches, has yet to lose an ATP Tour final.

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