MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Just when it looked like Carlos Alcaraz was back on track, along came Grigor Dimitrov.
Dimitrov, the veteran from Bulgaria who earned the impossible-to-live-up-to nickname “Baby Fed” early in his career, flat outplayed Alcaraz on a warm and windy night in south Florida at the Miami Open. Alcaraz was on his heels from the start and fell behind quickly as Dimitrov unleashed a fusillade of lusty winners, handing Alcaraz a lopsided 6-2, 6-4 defeat that was about as dominant as the scoreline suggested.
Taking advantage of an unexpected off night for Alcaraz, Dimitrov did everything better than the Spanish champion who was attempting to complete the second half of the “Sunshine Double” after winning the BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells earlier this month. Playing in front of a capacity crowd in the temporary tennis facility wedged into Hard Rock Stadium, Dimitrov delivered the show that the crowd had expected to see from Alcaraz — and with a flashy one-handed backhand to boot.
Grigor Dimitrov is through to the #MiamiOpen Semifinals for the first time!
The Bulgarian picks up a 6-2, 6-4 win over Alcaraz and faces Zverev next. pic.twitter.com/QMVdj2p52t
— Tennis Channel (@TennisChannel) March 29, 2024
Dimitrov jumped into the court to get on top of Alcaraz’s serve, the weakest part of his game. He blazed across it to catch up with Alcaraz’s attempts to paint the lines. And he sprinted to the net over and over to catch up with sloppy drop shots that Alcaraz floated too high or too deep, or both, then punished the 20-year-old Spanish champion for his mistakes.
For Alcaraz, the top seed, the loss was a surprising setback because he appeared to have put odd defeats of recent months behind him with his win in Indian Wells, the so-called Fifth Slam, where he rediscovered the joy, power and electrifying variety that have captivated the sport since he burst onto the scene three years ago.
That version of Alcaraz came to life briefly late in the second set, when he was a point away from going down two service breaks but managed to survive. Then he got the match back on serve in the next game thanks in part to a searing forehand that caught the outside edge of the line.
“He fired four rockets at me,” Dimitrov said
But Dimitrov steadied himself and, leading 5-4, rediscovered the aggression and speed that had put him in the lead. He jumped on Alcaraz’s serves once more, caught up to a drop shot and converted it into a winner down the line, then forced Alcaraz to send a last forehand wide and thrust his arms into the air.
Alcaraz and the rest of the sport will head into the clay court season, which he will likely begin in Monte Carlo next month. It’s the surface that may yet turn out to be the best one for him since he grew up on the red clay of Spain. But he has yet to win the one Grand Slam that is contested on the surface, the French Open, and likely has some work to do to sharpen his game back into a form where he isn’t vulnerable to losses against players he should beat.
Dimitrov will face Alexander Zverev in the semifinals Friday, with Jannik Sinner taking on Daniil Medvedev in the other semifinal.
Alcaraz said he wasn’t all that distressed about his own level and was largely in awe of the near-perfect performance that Dimitrov delivered. He searched all night for solutions but could not find them.
“I have a lot of frustrations right now,” Alcaraz said after the match. “He made me feel like I am 13 years old.”
He is more aware than anyone of the challenge that lies ahead and the expectations that everyone has for him and that he has for himself, especially after several months when he struggled to enjoy competing and practicing the game he loves.
“There is no time to get down right now,” he said. “There are a lot of tournaments. The season has just begun. I have to practice, to find the power, let’s say, to continue practicing well, enjoying practicing and really looking forward to playing the next tournament.”
(Photo: Geoff Burke / USA Today)
