By Chris Oddo | @TheFanChild | Friday January 17, 2025
Carlos Alcaraz dropped a set but battled past Nuno Borges in four to reach the round of 16.
Photo Source: Getty
Carlos Alcaraz moved over to the friendly confines of Rod Laver Arena for the first time this week and kept the fans on the edge of their seats with his trademark panache.

The 21-year-old kept up his bid to win the Career Grand Slam and stayed on collision course for a quarterfinal with 10-time champion Novak Djokovic, defeating Portugal’s Nuno Borges, 6-2, 6-4, 6-7(3), 6-2 to reach the second week at a major for the 11th time in his career.
"I'm just really happy with my level," Alcaraz said. "Could be better. I made a lot of mistakes that I shouldn't have done it. But anyway, in general, I just happy and have things to improve in approaching the next match."
Alcaraz saved all three break points he faced on the day but it wasn’t enough to keep the World No.33 from taking the third set in a tiebreak. Borges, who hit 15 winners against 54 for Alcaraz, has made a name for himself at the majors of late. He reached the fourth round at the Australian Open and the US Open last year, and hit a career-high ranking of 30 last September.
The 27-year-old weathered a lot of pressure from Alcaraz, saving eight of 13 break points, but was unable to keep his momentum in a fourth set that was dominated by the No.3 seed. Alcaraz hit 13 winners to just two for Borges in the fourth set as he pulled away and closed out his 63rd Grand Slam singles match win in two hours and 55 minutes.
Afterwards Alcaraz said that difficult conditions made it tricky for him to execute with precision.
"Obviously with the wind and everything, you know, the sun came out, and it was the first match I played with the sun out, and it was a lot of heat, and the conditions were a little bit different," he said. "So I had to see the difference. The ball became a little bit faster with the heat. I gonna say that that was why everything was a little bit trickier than the previous matches."
Alcaraz, coming off a career-best Australian Open quarterfinal performance in 2024, is attempting to become the youngest man to ever win titles at all four majors, and the first player to win more than four major titles before turning 22.
He will face either Jack Draper or Aleksandar Vukic in the round of 16, and would face seventh-seeded Djokovic in the quarterfinals if the seeds hold. If he makes it through that gauntlet, Alcaraz is slated to face No.2-seeded Alexander Zverev in the semifinals. The German took out Alcaraz in the quarterfinals in Melbourne last year.
More to follow…