Carlos Alcaraz qualified for the second round of the hard court tournament in Vienna after overcoming serious resistance from Russian Karen Khachanov. The Spanish tennis player, seeded No. 2 in the schedule, won the match with 6:4, 7:5(5) after a little more than two hours of play.
The world No. 3 had to put in a lot of effort to secure a place in the next phase of the competition. Khachanov, who is ranked 24th in the world rankings, faced the favorite with dignity and maintained the intrigue until the very end of the match.
In the first set, Alcaraz managed to find the necessary rhythm in the key moments and take the lead in the result. The Russian, however, did not give up and in the second half he put the Spaniard under pressure again. The outcome came after a hard-fought battle, in which Alcaraz showed greater stability in the decisive games and closed the match in two sets.
This was the seventh clash between the two at the professional level and their second this season. With the success in Vienna, Alcaraz increased his advantage in direct matches, recording his seventh victory over Khachanov.
In the second round, the Spaniard will face the winner of the match between Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili and the representative of the hosts Yuri Rodionov. Basilashvili is No. 95 in the world rankings, while the Austrian occupies the 137th position.