Carlos Alcaraz, the world No. 3, came from a set down to beat Jaume Munar 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 in the Japan Open semi-finals in Tokyo on Monday, reaching a second straight final as defending champion and setting up a title match against Jiri Lehecka.
Tokyo, Japan: For a set and a half, the defending champion looked like a man still finding his feet. Then Carlos Alcaraz turned it around, losing his grip on the first set and taking firm control of the next two.
The Spaniard is continuing his comeback from a wrist injury layoff, and Monday’s semi-final at the Ariake Coliseum showed the rhythm returning. It was also a reminder of a habit he admitted to afterwards: first sets are proving expensive.
Serving for the set, then losing it
Alcaraz led 5-3 in the opening set and served for it. He did not close it out. Four double faults in that set told the story of a serve that would not settle, and Munar, ranked 49th in the world, seized the opening to take the set 7-5.
Munar had earned his place in the last four by beating France’s Kyrian Jacquet, and he remained competitive late in the set against the favourite.
Drop shots and big returns
The second set brought a different Alcaraz. He started hitting through the ball on serve and return, mixed in drop shots to drag Munar forward and broke Munar’s serve to take the set 6-3. The pattern was familiar from his best days: heavy first serves, aggressive returns and enough variety to keep an opponent off balance.
It was a significant shift in momentum, and Munar never really recovered it.
The double break that ended it
The decider was one-way traffic. Alcaraz built a double break to lead 4-0, gave Munar only a glimpse of a way back and closed out the set 6-1. The match lasted two hours and 31 minutes.
“I don’t know what happened in the first set… It seems like I’m struggling every first set,” Alcaraz said afterwards. “But the way I come back every time, I’m just really happy.”
Defending a title in a comeback season
Alcaraz won this tournament last year, beating Taylor Fritz in the final, and he now has a chance to retain the trophy as he works his way back from injury. His return at the US Open was the first step back, and the Japan Open has given him a run of matches to rebuild his rhythm.
His quarter-final was shortened by an injury to Denis Shapovalov, who retired with an upper right thigh problem with Alcaraz leading 7-6(3), 2-1. The semi-final against Munar was therefore his hardest examination of the week, and he passed it.
Lehecka awaits in Tuesday’s final
Alcaraz will face Czech Jiri Lehecka in the championship match at the Ariake Coliseum on Tuesday. Lehecka reached the final by beating Monaco’s Valentin Vacherot 6-4, 6-2 in the second semi-final.
Alcaraz will need to fix his starts if he wants to lift the trophy for a second year running. Lehecka is unlikely to hand him a set’s head start without making him pay for it.
Score: Carlos Alcaraz (ESP) bt Jaume Munar (ESP) 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 — Japan Open, Tokyo, semi-final
Next: Final v Jiri Lehecka (CZE), Tuesday
