Alcaraz beats Shelton in Paris to secure first Masters title of season
· Yahoo Sports
Carlos Alcaraz won a rematch against Ben Shelton to claim his first Masters 1,000 title of the season in Paris on Sunday.
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Alcaraz lost out in a memorable late-night epic against American Shelton in the quarter-finals of the US Open in his first tournament back after four and a half months out with a wrist injury.
But the Spaniard has quickly found his form and made it back-to-back titles after winning in Vienna last week with a 7-6 (7-5), 7-5 victory in the French capital.
It is the first time for more than a year that Alcaraz has won a title at the top level of the ATP Tour, and a particularly notable one given he had previously struggled at the event.
Addressing his team at the presentation ceremony, Alcaraz said: “This is something that we’ve been chasing for a really long time.
“Not finding the great feeling coming here every year, not finding my great tennis, but we never give up. I had really painful losses here but we tried and tried again and finally we felt really comfortable coming here.”
It was not a classic match but once again it was Alcaraz who came out on top in the crucial moments, notably edging a first-set tie-break after withstanding some fierce pressure on his serve.
Big-serving Shelton, who continues to demonstrate his improvement, secured the first break of serve of the match to lead 4-2 in the second set but Alcaraz hit back strongly, winning five of the next six games.
Shelton praised his opponent, saying: “I don’t think that everybody realizes how difficult it is go back-to-back in Vienna and Paris. Ten matches in 14 days, going from a slow court to a very fast court.
“I think it speaks to your versatility as a champion and the work that you and your team put in. Every time we’re on the court together I feel you bring out the best in me. I’m super happy to have you back and healthy.”