- Casper Ruud [6] v Carlos Alcaraz [14]
- H2H: Alcaraz leads 1-0
MIAMI, USA – Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud face a golden opportunity as they aim to win their maiden Masters 1000 title in the Miami Open final on Sunday.
[table “ADPDAll” not found /]
Casper Ruud [6] v Carlos Alcaraz [14] H2H & Match Fundamentals
Casper Ruud has been dominant all week and scored career-best wins en route to reaching the first Masters 1000 final of his career which surprisingly for the Norwegian is on a hard court. Standing in Ruud’s way will be 18 year-old sensation Carlos Alcaraz who has displayed his power, elite mentality and tactical awareness to blast past his opponents and become the second youngest Miami Open finalist of all time. History awaits both players with the clay court season approaching, a surface that both players consider their strongest.
|
Casper Ruud [6] v Carlos Alcaraz [14] |
H2H: Alcaraz leads 1-0 |
|
ATP Miami |
Miami, USA |
|
Hard (O) |
Prize Money: $646,110/$1,231,245 |
|
1st on Stadium (18:00 BST) |
Amazon Prime Video <– Sign up for trial |
Ruud has only dropped one set throughout the tournament while Alcaraz has beaten world-class opponents on his way to a first Masters 1000 final.
Casper Ruud [6] route to the final
R2: Henri Laaksonen 6-2 6-1
R3: Alexander Bublik [30] 6-3 6-2
R4: Cameron Norrie [10] 6-3 6-4
QF: Alexander Zverev [2] 6-3 1-6 6-3
SF: Francisco Cerundolo 6-4 6-1
Carlos Alcaraz [14] route to the final
R2: Marton Fucsovics 6-3 6-2
R3: Marin Cilic [21] 6-4 6-4
R4: Stefanos Tsitsipas [3] 7-5 6-3
QF: Miomir Kecmanovic 6-7(5) 6-3 7-6(5)
SF: Hubert Hurkacz [8] 7-6(5) 7-6(2)
Playing Styles and Predictions
Ruud has been a consistent player on all surfaces and is now starting to convert that consistency into breakthrough results at the latter stages of big tournaments.
Now Ruud stands one win away from a historic maiden masters 1000 title on a surface that isn’t one of his specialists.
After his semi-final victory Ruud told the ATP website that it was a great feeling to achieve a maiden Masters 1000 final on a hard court, “It was not where I imagine myself playing my first Masters 1000 final [on a hard court], but I will take it,” Ruud said.
“It is a great feeling and I am enjoying the city and the tournament. It was pretty brutal today. Very humid, which made the breathing a little tough. It is a great feeling. I am standing here smiling. I have had three tough loses in my previous Masters [1000] semi-finals and I thought today was a good chance to reach my first final. I started a little shaky but I was able to pull through and raise my level when I really needed to.”
Standing in Ruud’s way is Alcaraz who has achieved his own bit of history by becoming the second youngest player to reach the Miami Open final behind his idol Rafael Nadal.
Alcaraz’s impressive and effortless power and athleticism has seen him see off some world-class opponents as he looks to claim a masters 1000 title at just 18 years-old.
Also speaking to the ATP Website Alcaraz admitted that it was an emotional moment in his young career, “I have a lot of emotions right now. It’s something that you dream of when you are a child,” Alcaraz admitted.
“It’s really good to be in the final here in Miami. I love playing here. The crowd is amazing. I’m going to approach the final like a first round, trying to mask the nerves. I’m going to enjoy it, it’s going to be a great final. At the beginning, I saw that I couldn’t return. I thought we were going to play a lot of tie-breaks… A little bit different [than my previous matches] with his serve, but it’s a great win for me.”
Ruud will look to continue to be consistently aggressive and create different angles as that is something Alcaraz struggled with against Miomir Kecmanovic. While Alcaraz will continue to serve efficiently and effectively as well as being accurate from the baseline, using his agility to neutralise the points against the Norwegian.
Nerves will be a factor in this match but not too much of a factor as Alcaraz’s star quality mixed with Ruud’s composure should ensure an easier settled approach from both players. This is a tough match to call but Ruud’s energy could be just a step too far for Alcaraz but it’s a small advantage for the sixth seed heading into Sunday’s showpiece event.
Prediction: Ruud in three sets.
 |
How to Watch/Follow ATP Miami
|
Live Stream |
Amazon Prime Video <– Sign up for trial TennisTV <- Subscription Required |
|
Live Scores |
| Follow Britwatch - Sport in General, Brits in Particular! | |
|---|---|
| Soundcloud | |
| YouTube | |
| We may receive compensation for products purchased via affiliate links on this website | |