Alcaraz overcomes Munar challenge to move into Japan Open final

Tokyo: World No.3 Carlos Alcaraz overcame a challenge from his Spanish compatriot Jaume Munar in the Japan Open semifinal to prevail 5-7, 6-3, 6-1 at the Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo on Monday.

Alcaraz was a set down after squandering his serves as he lost the opening set. He mounted a comeback with a few breaks to win the second one 6-3 before firing on all cylinders in the final set to win it 6-1 and make it to consecutive finals in Tokyo.

"I don’t know what happened in the first set… The first sets in general, to be honest. I don’t know. I started the match well, breaking, serving for the set. Don’t know what happened. It seems like I’m struggling every first set. But the way I come back every time, I’m just really happy about it," Alcaraz told the tournament broadcasters after the win.

Alcaraz has had to dig deep in the first sets throughout the tournament. He needed tie-breaks against Denis Shapovalov in the quarterfinals, against Matteo Arnaldi in the round of 16 and against Alex Michelsen in the round of 32 too.

Against Munar, he was 5-3 up in the first set and was serving for the set. But he was broken in the next game before Munar went up 6- 5 and took the opening set.

Alcaraz then staged a comeback in the second one. He broke for a 2-1 lead before holding the next for 3-1 and breaking again for a 4-2 lead. He then bagged the set with a break to seal it 6-3.

He was back at his usual best in the third set and kept holding and breaking his compatriot. At 4-0, he was a double break up in the third set, and although Munar held his serve, Alcaraz won the match with his own serve 6-1.

The seven-time Grand Slam champion will now be up against Jiri Lehecka or Valentin Vacherot in the final, both of whom were scheduled to play their game soon after Alcaraz's match.

Alcaraz chose to compete in the Japan Open, while some other stars are participating in the China Open. He is a 2025 winner in Tokyo, having defeated Taylor Fritz in the final last year.

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