Alcaraz escapes in tight Cincinnati opener

Carlos Alcaraz got out of jail after a second-set shock, with the Spaniard repairing the damage to earn a 6-1, 2-5, 6-3 opening win over Damir Dzumhur.to advance at the Cincinnati Masters on Sunday.

The losing Wimbledon finalist to Jannik Sinner needed to call upon all of his resources to finally overcome the 33-year-old Bosnian at the final big event prior to the August 25 US Open kickoff.

The second seed swept the opening set in what was looking like a rout as he played for the first time since his loss in the All England Club final.

Dzumhur broke twice in the second set to square the afternoon before Alcaraz rescued his hopes, delivering a seventh ace to set up match point and converting seconds later for his 12th hardcourt Masters win despite 44 unforced errors.

 “It was a relief to get this win,” the 22-year-old said. “It was a roller-coaster  of good feelings and bad feelings.

“I was happy to get the win in the end. I know that I have chances to do better.

The 2023 Cincinnati finalist added: “it can be difficult to play great tennis here, the ball really flies and goes super fast. There will be some points where you don’t feel so good.

“You must maintain positive thoughts and keep going in the right way.”

Aussie sixth seed Alex de Minaur, fell victim to US servebot Reilly Opelka 7-6 (6), 6-4, with the winner firing 14 aces.

Washington champion de Minaur had won all five previous meetings in their series.

Spanish veteran Roberto Bautista Agut dismissed Briton Cam Norrie 6-4, 6-3 while number nine seed Andrey Rublev put out American Learner Tien 7-6 (7/4), 6-3.