ATP Montpellier: Strong comeback after Australian Open injury withdrawal, Alcaraz successfully defends title

On February 8 local time, the ATP250 Montpellier men's singles final took place, where top seed Alcaraz defeated local veteran Mannarino 6-3, 7-6(4), successfully defending his title and claiming his ninth career tour singles trophy. Alcaraz's world ranking rose two spots this week, moving up to sixth place.

Alcaraz showed dominant form in the final, never facing a break point and delivering 13 aces throughout the match. He started strong by winning eight consecutive points and broke twice in the first set to take it swiftly. The second set was tighter; at 5-4, Alcaraz had his first match point but Mannarino saved it with a strong serve. However, the Canadian then won five straight points from 2-4 down in the tiebreak, sealing a straight-sets victory in 96 minutes and improving their head-to-head to 2-1.

Alcaraz successfully defends his title in Montpellier

In a post-match interview, Alcaraz said, "Adrian (Mannarino) is a tough opponent for everyone, which is why all tour players respect him so much; he always poses a threat on court. I knew today would be a tough battle, so I’m very happy to win here again. I played well throughout the week and especially performed excellently today."

Alcaraz’s performance during this year’s Australian season was not ideal; he recorded one win and one loss at the United Cup, with his Canadian team failing to advance from the group stage. Then, in the first round of the Australian Open, he had to retire mid-match due to a left thigh injury, becoming the first top-ten seed to exit.

However, the Canadian star quickly bounced back on his favored ground in Montpellier, defeating three-time Grand Slam champion Wawrinka, returning local player Fils, qualifier dark horse Droguet, and veteran Mannarino in succession. By winning here for the second consecutive year, he surpassed compatriot Raonic to become the Canadian male player with the most tour titles in the Open Era. This championship further cemented Alcaraz’s status as the “Prince of Indoor Courts,” with eight of his nine tour titles coming indoors.

Alcaraz’s next tournament will be the ATP500 Rotterdam indoor hard court event starting this week, alongside the ATP500 Dallas hard court, ATP250 Buenos Aires clay court, and WTA1000 Doha hard court tournaments.

(Text and editing by Wang Fei, photos courtesy of Visual China)