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Carlos Alcaraz Overcomes Illness to Beat Andrey Rublev in ATP Finals

Carlos Alcaraz defeated Andrey Rublev in straight sets at the 2024 ATP Finals.

Pat Benson

Carlos Alcaraz defeated Andrey Rublev in the Group Stage of the 2024 ATP Finals in Turin, Italy.
Carlos Alcaraz defeated Andrey Rublev in the Group Stage of the 2024 ATP Finals in Turin, Italy. / Susan Mullane-Imagn Images

Carlos Alcaraz and his team had to pull out of all his tricks to be physically ready for his Group Stage match against Andrey Rublev at the ATP Finals on Wednesday.

Alcaraz has battled an illness for the past week and applied Vicks VaporRub on his chest in addition to wearing a nasal strip during the match. Despite not feeling well, Alcaraz defeated Rublev in straight sets: 6-3, 7-6 (8).

After losing his first match of the ATP Finals to Casper Ruud, Alcaraz offered three reasons for his recent struggles. Once he settled, Alcaraz's problems disappeared. The World No. 3 came back from 3-2 to rattle off four straight games.

Alcaraz looked strong at the start of the second set, hitting three aces in the first game. However, Rublev refused to go away easily. The two players traded games and battled to 6-6. Eventually, Alcaraz narrowly won the tightly contested tie-break and the match.

Alcaraz said after the match, "I could be better. I've been struggling with my health the last week. Today, I thought I was going to feel better. I was OK enough to play, but I'm thinking about how in the first match I was thinking a lot how I was sick and couldn't play."

He continued, "Today, I really wanted to step on the court and just show good tennis and play a high level. Try to show the people a good time to try to make them happy. When I got off the court from the first match I felt like I didn't entertain the people or play good tennis. I tried to do it today, and I think I played really good tennis."

Alcaraz was pleasantly surprised with how he performed despite not feeling 100% today. "I surprised myself with how I played from the baseline and with my serve. I was really calm. I tried to be focused on my game and forget that I’m not feeling well, that I'm sick, all that stuff."

He continued, "Once you step on court, you have to forget everything you're struggling with off the court. You try to put your focus on hitting good forehands and backhands. Make good tactics. I think I did pretty well. I surprised myself."

Alcaraz moves to 1-1 in the Group Stage and will face World No. 2 Alexander Zverev on Thursday. Rublev falls to 0-2 and plays World No. 6 Casper Ruud on Thursday. The semifinals are starting to take shape, but are far from decided.

Rublev has not yet been eliminated but is dangerously close to an early exit. Ruud could qualify for the semifinals by defeating Zverev today. If Ruud wind, Rublev is out and Alcaraz would play Zverev for the second spot. Meanwhile, a Zverev win would throw semifinal qualification to the final rotation of round-robin matches on Friday.

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Pat Benson
PAT BENSON

Pat Benson covers the sneaker industry for Sports Illustrated's FanNation. Previously, he has reported on the NBA, authored "Kobe Bryant's Sneaker History (1996-2020)," and interviewed some of the biggest names in the sports world. You can email him at 1989patbenson@gmail.com.

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