The world’s best player, Carlos Alcaraz, said that he sometimes felt “invincible” when he defeated Italian qualifier Flavio Cobolli in straight sets on Monday in the first round of the French Open.
The 20-year-old defeated his 159th-ranked opponent in three sets, winning 6-0, 6-2, and 7-5 to become the youngest champion at Roland Garros since Bjorn Borg in 1976.
The 20-year-old is one of the favorites to succeed his compatriot and 14-time Roland Garros winner Rafa Nadal, who is out this year due to a hip problem, and has already established himself as a strong contender on the greatest stages.
Alcaraz, the US Open winner, took control of the first eight games of Monday’s match and quickly took a 2-0 lead.
He gave his outmatched opponent only 10 points in the opening set.
I believed I could never lose a game. I believed that I could have won more easily than I did, but every game may change the outcome of a match. But before the game began, I thought I could win,” he stated.
In the third set, Cobolli, who was playing in his first Grand Slam, briefly rallied, but he was unable to convert on two break opportunities in the sixth game.
Alcaraz then watched as four match points were lost as the Italian clung to a 5-5 tie.
But in the 12th game, the Spaniard won the match on a fifth match point.
Alcaraz will next face Taro Daniel of Japan for a spot in the round of 32.
Daniel, who was born in New York and is now ranked 112, won his greatest Slam at the Australian Open in 2022, when he advanced to the third round after winning a qualification match against Andy Murray, the previous world number one.
His best performance in Paris was a round two showing in 2017.
On hard courts this year, Daniel has excelled, making it to the quarterfinals in Acapulco and the second round after qualifying in Indian Wells and Miami.
“I know the level of Taro, so it’s going to be a really tough second round, really tough match,” Alcaraz said.
Therefore, I must be ready for that as well as a truly difficult one.
