Unfortunately, Carlos Alcaraz, who is currently ranked as the second best player in the world, has been eliminated from the Paris Masters tournament in the first round following a loss to Roman Safiullin.
The Spanish player had hopes of finishing his year on the regular tour by winning in Paris, but they were dashed by the 45th ranked Safiullin. The Russian, who advanced through qualifying, achieved his best-ever victory by winning 6-3, 6-4 in less than two hours.
Recently, a video of Alcaraz outplaying Novak Djokovic during practice has gained attention online. However, the two top players will not face each other on the main court during the final Masters tournament of the year.
Alcaraz appeared to be on track for a typical evening when he successfully broke Safiullin in the third game. However, he was soon countered and Safiullin gained the upper hand by breaking again at 4-3 and ultimately winning the first set with his serve.
In the second set, Alcaraz took an early lead of 3-1, but Safiullin quickly countered and won five out of the following six games, causing a major upset along the Seine.
Safiullin explained that it was a challenging match, as he did not perform at his best during the qualifying rounds. However, when facing Carlos, he knew he had to raise his game. Although Carlos did not play his best, Safiullin is pleased with his victory since Carlos is ranked number two in the world, was once ranked number one, and has won two grand slam titles. It is always difficult to defeat such a skilled opponent, even if they are not in top form.
Source: theguardian.com
