Carlos Alcaraz enters maiden Australian Open final, says ‘I was struggling’ after surviving Alexander Zverev scare

Carlos Alcaraz admitted that he was “struggling” after the Spaniard survived a Alexander Zverev scare in a five-set thriller to march into his maiden Australian Open final on Friday at the Rod Laver Arena. Alcaraz, who fought a leg issue, delivered despite losing two sets to win 6-4, 7-6(7-5), 6-7(3-7), 6-7(4-7), 7-5 to keep his Australian Open dreams alive.

After winning the first two sets, Alcaraz experienced

The 22-year-old was barely able to move after experiencing a problem midway through the third set, which he lost in a tiebreak, and he relied on his sublime ball-striking and placement to land winners and prolong the contest.

Alcaraz continued to battle away, seeing off Zverev in the decider and will aim to recover for a meeting with either Novak Djokovic or Jannik Sinner in Sunday's title clash, where a victory will see him complete his set of majors.

More to follow…