Carlos Alcaraz ends Dan Evans run to set up ‘spicy’ Barcelona Open final showdown with Stefanos Tsitsipas

Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz marched into the Barcelona Open final with a 6-2 6-2 win over Britain’s Dan Evans.

Alcaraz’s formidable form on home soil continued as he ended an impressive run from 12th seed Evans to reach Sunday’s final without dropping a set in his four matches.

The Spaniard now faces a mouth-watering final against second seed and two-time Barcelona finalist Stefanos Tsitsipas.

“Stefanos as well is playing great matches. Last year we had a spicy match, let’s say,” Alcaraz said.

“I know he’s a really nice guy off the court, so I’m going to try to forget everything that has happened in the matches before, try to focus on my game tomorrow, and try to get the win.

“It’s so special to play a final here in Barcelona, a tournament that I love playing,” Alcaraz added.

“I came to watch this tournament when I was really young and I played for this club when I was 11 or 12. I love this club, I love this tournament, and it’s so special to have the chance to lift the trophy here again.”

In the first semi-final of the day, Tsitsipas said he needed the “determination of a lion” to survive a spirited fightback from Lorenzo Musetti in a 6-4 5-7 6-3 victory.

Tsitsipas is aiming for his first tournament crown at the ATP 500 event after twice finishing as a runner-up to Nadal, in 2018 and 2021.

The top two seeds will face off on Sunday, where Alcaraz will look to become the first repeat Barcelona champion since Rafael Nadal’s run of three from 2016-2018.

Evans hit fine form on the clay courts of Catalonia this week, overcoming Matteo Arnaldi, Karen Khachanov and Francisco Cerundolo to reach the last four.

But he was blown away by Alcaraz in the opening set, as the Spaniard dropped just one point in his first two service games and earned an early break to go 3-1 up.

The Brit’s only break point of the opener came in the next game as he got an immediate chance to strike back, but Alcaraz saved it and held.

Evans dropped a second service game at the end of the opener when Alcaraz pounced on the first of two set points with a smash at the net to wrap things up in 36 minutes.

Alcaraz immediately applied pressure in the second set and broke Evans at the first attempt; the Brit managed to save two break points but it was third time lucky for the 19-year-old.

The Spaniard saw off another break point to hold, before dispatching a superb return winner to break again and go 4-0 up, extending his streak to six games in a row.

Evans was determined not to go down without a fight and finally made a breakthrough on the Alcaraz serve to narrow the deficit and give himself a glimpse of hope with a hold, but Alcaraz bounced back with two games in a row to secure a routine win.

Earlier, Tsitsipas overcame Musetti in a three-set epic lasting two hours and 29 minutes.

The second seed clinched the first set 6-4, coming back from a break down at 3-4 to win three straight games.

Tsitsipas hadn’t dropped a service game, let alone a set, all week in Barcelona but both those records came to an end against the Italian, who battled his way to the second set to force a decider.

But he couldn’t cope with a fast start from the Greek in the third, as he raced into a 4-0 lead that proved insurmountable.

“It was very physical out there. We had to cover lots of metres on the court and he had some incredible defensive shots that I really didn’t expect at all,” Tsitsipas said.

“It was such a mental challenge, I had to go out there and fight it all through [with] the determination of a lion, and just [went] out there to do the best I can. He’s a very difficult challenge, especially on this court, so it required a little bit more today.”

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