By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Friday May 4, 2023
Jan-Lennard Struff edged Aslan Karatsev to book his first Masters 1000 final.
Photo Source: TTV
Nearly sent packing after a qualifying loss to Aslan Karatsev eight days ago, Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff has made the most of his opportunity in the main draw at the Madrid Open. The 33-year-old exacted revenge on Karatsev on Friday night in the Spanish capital to become the first lucky loser to reach a Masters 1000 final.
Struff, who fell to Karatsev 6-4, 6-2 in qualies, rallied for a 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 victory and will face Carlos Alcaraz for the title on Sunday in Madrid.
“Very happy to get a second chance,” Struff told reporters after his win. “This is just a crazy story, I would say. Yeah, couldn't have imagined this, for sure not to be now in a final here.” The German has won five consecutive three-setters to reach the final.
Struff will climb to a career-high ranking as a result of his performance. His run to the final takes him to No.28 in the rankings and he could go even higher if he finds a way past Alcaraz in the final.
He has won one of the two matches he has played against Alcaraz – it came on clay at Roland-Garros in 2021. Alcaraz defeated struff in five sets in their second meeting, which took place in the first round at Wimbledon last year.
“I managed to beat him,” he said, referring to their previous encounter on the Paris clay. “For a player like him, at his young age, two years is a lot of time. We played an amazing match in Wimbledon last year, where I was very close to beating him, but he played unbelievable shots in the tiebreak.
“This is going to be different. This is in Spain. This is Madrid. It's gonna be very, very tough, but I need to go for it. Otherwise, I'll have no chance – I'll try my best to beat him and get my first title.”
A strong comeback to stop Karatsev
Struff kept his wits about him after dropping the first set to Alcaraz. The Russian was struggling with a left thigh issue and it appeared to impact his performance in the later stages of the match.
“First of all, I feel like Aslan had some issues at the end,” he said. “He was struggling a bit with his leg. It's very unfortunate. I wish him all the best.”
Once Struff took control in the third set, breaking for 3-2, Karatsev pushed back. He held for 3-4 then took a medical timeout. Two games later, Struff had four match points, but the Russian stayed alive.
“For me, it wasn't that easy because I knew I had to put the ball in and play aggressive,” Struff said, “But yeah, he played amazing on these match points. I tried to get it done at 5-3. Serving for it is different. I lost the first point – he played a good point and, yeah, I managed to stay calm, serving well, going for my shots.”
Struff closed out his victory in two hours and 18 minutes, converting his fifth match point to improve to 11-6 overall in 2023.
Struff, ranked 65, has never won an ATP title.
Alcaraz, meanwhile, will be bidding for his tenth ATP title, and his second in Madrid.
“It's just incredible journey and story, here in Madrid, and very, very happy,” Struff said, adding his personal takeaway from the experience: “Yeah, just that you shouldn't give up and try again always.”