Alcaraz shockingly lost in the third round of Rome Masters

Italy's Carlos Alcaraz lost to world number 135 Fabian Marozsan 3-6, 6-7(4) in the third round of the Rome Masters 1000 on May 15.

Marozsan's victory shocked the ATP Tour and was considered the biggest upset in the history of the Rome Masters. Alcaraz, who will be world number one after the tournament in Italy, had to constantly fend off the heavy and deep balls of his Hungarian opponent. The Spaniard hung up his racket after an hour and 40 minutes, against an opponent who had just played in the qualifying round and was 130 ATP rankings below him.

Main developments of the Alcaraz - Marozsan match on May 15.

Throughout the match, Marozsan often used Alcaraz's signature shots to score points. The Hungarian attacked well with both his forehand and backhand and dropped with a high efficiency. Marozsan won the first return game of the first set, before holding his serve games to win 6-3.

Marozsan's powerful serves and high bounces forced Alcaraz to retreat more than four metres behind the baseline to return. The world number two was therefore often forced to defend in his receiving games. Marozsan, on the other hand, hugged the court and was willing to take risks in his returning games.

After missing three break-points in the first set of the second set, the 23-year-old took advantage of the opportunity in game 7 and led 4-3. But in the next game, Alcaraz also took advantage of the break-point to equalize the score at 4-4. The Spanish player celebrated the winning game with great relief and regained his confidence.

The two players went to a second-set tiebreaker. There, Alcaraz led 4-1, but Marozsan won the next six points to close out the set and eliminate the second seed. "It was unbelievable," Marozsan said, surprised by his victory. "I just wanted to do something special, but win a few games or a set. But today, everything was perfect."

Alcaraz waves to the crowd at the Rome Masters before leaving the tournament. Photo: Reuters

Alcaraz suffered his third defeat in 33 matches since the beginning of the year. In the match against Marozsan, the world number two only had 15 winners, half as many as his opponent. Marozsan became the first player outside the world's top 100 to defeat Alcaraz since Hugo Gaston at the 2021 Paris Masters.

Marozsan has won two ATP Challenger titles in his career. He will rise to at least world No. 114 after the Rome Masters. In the previous two main rounds, the Hungarian defeated Corentin Moutet and Jiri Lehecka. In the fourth round, he will face Borna Coric.

Vy Anh

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