Barcelona Open: Alcaraz extends dominance over de Minaur
World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz improved his head-to-head against Alex de Minaur to 4-0 with a dominant victory at the Barcelona Open on Friday, racing past the Aussie 7-5, 6-3 to make the final four.
Alcaraz was a $1.20 favourite at BetOnline going into the quarter-finals of the ATP 500 event, riding a seven-match winning streak after lifting the Monte-Carlo Masters trophy on Sunday in Monaco.
He needed just over an hour and a half to record his fourth win against de Minaur, breaking the fifth seed four times after initially falling behind 3-1 in the opening stanza.
“I started quite badly with the serve, I was struggling a little bit mentally with it,” Alcaraz said.
“It was just the first few games with my serve, then I think I improved a lot.
“I calmed myself down and started to think positively again.
“Alex started strong, playing aggressively, and the first set was really tight.”
The win shortens Alcaraz’s odds of winning the Barcelona Open to just $1.53, with Dane Holger Rune the next shortest across tennis betting sites at $5.
Rune won a tense clash against Scandinavian rival Casper Ruud, beating the world No.10 for the first time in two years.
“It means a lot, it was a really good match today,” said Rune, who was a $2.38 underdog at leading bookies pre-match.
“I was hitting through my groundstrokes and feeling good.
“I played the right way and I’m very happy I was able to finish it.
“He made it difficult, he’s a great player.
“I think I played on my terms and I was really explosive, this is how I want to play.”
Rune is a $1.50 favourite with the top online bookmakers against Karen Khachanov in the semi-finals, after the Russian beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina 6-5, 7-5 in their quarter-final.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, squares off against Frenchman Arthur Fils for the second time in two weeks, with Fils advancing after Stefanos Tsitsipas withdrew just three games into their clash.
The Spaniard is a $1.30 favourite at BetOnline to beat Fils, having won their clash in Monte-Carlo in three sets last week.
