Madrid Open 2023: Spain counts down to Carlos Alcaraz and Iga Swiatek finals – ‘Air of anticipation’

Carlos Alcaraz was treated to more adulation in his homeland as the 20-year-old made it a birthday to remember by moving to within one win of retaining his Madrid title.

The World No.2 will meet a major underdog in Sunday’s final, but that’s not the case in the WTA draw as the top two seeds lock horns in a battle that could be an early chapter in a burgeoning high-profile rivalry.

Paul Hassall was at the Caja Magica to witness the action and look ahead to Iga Swiatek v Aryna Sabalenka: Part Eight.

More shocks in the men’s draw? Not when Carlos Alcaraz is involved.

Ever wondered what it’s like to turn 20 and have the world at your feet?

Just ask Alcaraz.

His Croatian opponent has a reputation for raising his level when faced with the elite stars on the tour (with a 3-5 record v Top-2 players) and has broken Spanish hearts in the past.

He defeated Rafael Nadal in last year’s Cincinnati Masters on his way to a sensational, surprise tournament triumph and is one of a select group of players to have a favourable head-to-head match-up against the 22-time Grand Slam champion having played a handful of matches or more (Coric leads 3-2).

So, was there a realistic chance the 26-year-old No.17 seed could be a party-pooper on Alcaraz’s big day and upset Spanish tennis fans once more?

Well, yes, particularly given the way the opposite side of the men’s draw has developed – and we all know no-one likes to work on their birthday – but the reality was Alcaraz refused to disappoint a partisan home crowd, who cheered him through a tough opener which was very much in keeping with the suggestion we made earlier in the week, that his following on his home patch is akin to the hype of Beatlemania.

Arriving on the grounds prior to midday, there was a vast, winding queue soaring right the way along Camino de Perales all the way up to the ‘Magic Box’ entrance.

It seemed strange given there was only a doubles match on Manolo Santana Stadium show court prior to a 16.00 CET start for the first of the men’s semi finals, but clearly word had spread Alcaraz was having a training session inside Arantxa Sanchez Vicario stadium.

The lower sections of the venue were rammed with fans looking to get a close-up glimpse of their idol and capture some selfies. Alcaraz was typically in good spirits, firing tennis balls into the crowd and signing autographs before blushing with typical humility as the Spanish crowd sang happy birthday to him.

It would not be the first time during the day as he enjoyed more jubilant and celebratory reactions following his defeat of Coric.

Now, it’s just a case of capping off a sensational few weeks on Spanish soil by winning the final against a major underdog.

It’s easier said than done but it would be hard to look beyond ‘Charlie’ at this point too, despite a tournament of shocks on the men’s side.

Top two WTA stars set for spicy showdown

Historically the WTA has treated us to some of the greatest rivalries in tennis.

Few can match up to the heavyweight showdowns between Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova while the latter had a short, but high stakes series of encounters with Steffi Graf.

The German would also lock horns with Monica Seles and more recently the early meetings between the Williams sisters had plenty of entertainment and intrigue.

Fast forward to 2023 and there’s just a glimmer of a suggestion/hope that Iga Swiatek and Aryna Sabalenka could be at the start of something special.

The Pole also leads the match-up 3-0 on clay courts and is 6-0 in sets, but Sabalenka – and pundits hopeful she can start to make more of an impact against the reigning French Open champion – has stoked the fires ahead of their eighth encounter by claiming she wants revenge for Stuttgart.

The stats back up just why there’s such an air of anticipation relating to Saturday’s clash in the Spanish capital too.

It is the first WTA final between the top two players on the planet for the first time in nine years, and only the third occasion in the past 40 years that they will meet twice on clay in a single season (Serena Williams v Maria Sharapova in 2013 and Navratilova v Evert in 1984).

The H2H and general form on clay suggest Swiatek will be a clear favourite, but don’t go ruling out Sabalenka just yet. The Australian Open champion is flying this season and has pedigree when it comes to upsetting a World No.1 at the ‘Magic Box’ having also avenged a Stuttgart loss to Ashleigh Barty by lifting the trophy in Madrid for her maiden clay-court trophy back in 2021.

It’s still early days in this budding rivalry and Sabalenka is going to have to start to make more impact in terms of match wins (which may be more likely on hard courts), but the potential is certainly there if both players continue on their respective upward trajectories.

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