Alcaraz defeats Mpetshi Perricard in fierce back-and-forth battle

World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain defeated No. 51-ranked Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France 6-4, 6-4 in the first round of the China Open. It was their first-ever meeting.

Alcaraz’s consistency and discipline enabled him to withstand Perricard’s flurry of lightning-fast serves. By breaking Perricard’s serve in the first game of each set, Alcaraz placed himself in prime position to win the match.

“It wasn't an easy match,” Alcaraz said in a post-match press conference. “Difficult to get the rhythm from the baselines. But I think I did what I had to do: put some returns in, put some pressure on [Perricard’s] service game, play good points when I had the chance from the baseline.”

Perricard continuously awed the crowd with his 200+ km/h serves, one of the fastest on the tour. However, in the opening game, he wasn’t able to land more than two of his first serves, and Alcaraz took advantage to break Perricard’s serve and go up 1-0.

Alcaraz then proved that Perricard wasn’t the only player with a strong serve. He came out swinging as well, going on to win four out of five points in the ensuing game; putting himself ahead 2-0.

Perricard then seemed to settle into the match; after double-faulting to send the third game to deuce he notched back-to-back aces to get himself on the board in the set. Alcaraz, though, bounced back in the fourth game with his own serve, and the two continued to exchange game wins.

The highlight of the match came in the 10th game as Alcaraz, ahead 5-4, had the serve. After going down 0-40, he fended off back-to-back break points; then went on to rally and win the next, accompanying his winning forehand with an emphatic roar. At deuce, the two players shared an exhilarating rally, which Alcaraz won at the net by smashing a volley that hit Perricard.

Alcaraz stood at the net and apologized for the shot and didn’t return to the serving position in adequate time, which resulted in his second time violation of the match. As a result, he lost his first serve at ad-in and walked up to the chair umpire to argue the call. Despite being unsuccessful, Alcaraz placed his remaining serve perfectly, winning the game and the set, and he let out a booming “Vamos!”

“Saving three break points and being able to close the first set, it was really important,” Alcaraz said. “It was really important for me coming to the second set with energy and confidence. That’s what I did.”

Entering the second set, Perricard appeared to have lost his momentum, as he double-faulted three times in the first game. Alcaraz capitalized on the final point, breaking Perricard again. In the ensuing game, Alcaraz won four straight points, closing out the game with an ace.

In the third game Perricard regained his footing and served well to bring the set to 1-2. He had a chance to capitalize in the fourth game, after Alcaraz notched his first double-fault of the match to send the game to deuce. Alcaraz, though, wasn’t having any of it; he sent two serves down the center service line that Perricard was unable to return.

Each player traded service games through the remainder of the set. ; Alcaraz closed out the match by sweeping Perricard in the final game.

Continuing his momentum from last week’s Laver Cup victory in Berlin, Alcaraz will face Tallon Griekspoor in the second round. The Spaniard won all three of his previous matches against Griekspoor, most recently at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

—Reporting by Reade Snelling