Carlos Alcaraz, who was on the verge of reclaiming the No. 1 ranking, experienced a surprising and disappointing loss in the third round of the Italian Open. He was defeated by Fabian Marozsan, a 135th-ranked Hungarian qualifier, with a score of 6-3, 7-6 (4). This defeat marks Alcaraz’s earliest exit from a tournament since October.
Prior to this loss, Alcaraz had been in excellent form, winning 30 out of 32 matches this year and maintaining a 12-match winning streak on clay after securing back-to-back titles in Barcelona and Madrid. With a victory in his opening match in Rome, he was poised to regain the top spot in the rankings. However, Marozsan’s exceptional performance, which included effective drop shots, caught Alcaraz off guard and left him unable to find suitable responses to his opponent’s tactics. Following his disheartening loss at the Italian Open, Carlos Alcaraz will head into the upcoming French Open, where he will be the top seed, with the defeat fresh in his mind. The timing of the loss, less than two weeks before the tournament begins, adds to the disappointment for Alcaraz. Adding to the surprise of the match outcome, Fabian Marozsan’s victory is particularly notable because it marks his first appearance in the main draw of an ATP tournament. The Hungarian qualifier’s achievement in defeating a highly ranked and in-form player like Alcaraz adds to the unexpected nature of the result.
Fabian Marozsan’s next opponent in the Italian Open will be Borna Coric. Coric has been displaying strong performances on clay, as evidenced by his recent victory over Roberto Carballes Baena with a score of 7-6 (3), 6-1. In the previous week’s Madrid Open, Coric made it to the semifinals before being defeated by Carlos Alcaraz.