Carlos Alcaraz's urgency again carries him to victory in Rio

Carlos Alcaraz didn’t just scale the tennis mountain last year. He sprinted there, soaring to the pinnacle with as much passion and as wide a range of shots as you’ll ever see. Given that Alcaraz is still in his teens, his breadth has been particularly dazzling. With power and precision, artistry and grit, groundstrokes and volleys, the fearlessness of youth and the focus of age, Alcaraz has upped the ante in all categories, offering the first, best glimpse into what championship tennis might look like in the post-Big Three era.

But for two hours today, in the semis of the Rio Open presented by Claro, Alcaraz’s future was less in his hands and more in those of a formidable, inspired qualifier. Nicolas Jarry, ranked as high as No. 38 in the world in 2019, currently No. 139, stands 6’ 6” and for so much of this match, played the kind of highly assertive tennis required for beating Alcaraz. Big serves, crisp forehands, and several sweet angled crosscourt forehand volleys repeatedly terminated one rally after another. It wasn’t enough, Alcaraz in the end winning, 6-7 (2), 7-5, 6-0. Alcaraz now stands one victory away from winning this title for the second year in a row.

Judged by the score, Alcaraz’s victory appears simply the case of a better player wearing down a lesser one. Viewed more closely, one sees how yet another one of Alcaraz’s many appealing attributes helped him earn this win: urgency, displayed even when not expected. Down 2-5 in the first set, Alcaraz did more than just stick around. We’ve seen players come back methodically, one toothpick at a time bringing them back into contention. Not Alcaraz. From the deficit, he sprinted his way through 12 straight winning points, a lightning bolt-like resurgence that levelled the set. From that moment on, Jarry knew this wasn’t going to be one of those days when a top player was off or, in Alcaraz’s case, stale and weary in only his second tournament of the year.

There come in sports rare champions. Baseball had Willie Mays, nicknamed the “Say Hey Kid.” Basketball had Earvin “Magic” Johnson, and more recently Steph Curry. Football currently has Patrick Mahomes. These are greats who not just excel, but command their sport with a charismatic blend of engagement and detachment, brilliance and joy, all sparkling at once like July 4th fireworks.

So it goes with Alcaraz, with everything from the visceral level of his intensity to the pleasure he takes in the construction and completion of a point, be it with a running winner off either side, a deft drop shot or a thunderous overhead. A major highlight of the Alcaraz playing style is that no matter who he’s playing, eye-popping moments are certain to happen. Versus Jarry, there came many, including a down-the-line forehand passing shot Alcaraz struck out of camera range that nearly went around the net post.

In Sunday’s final, for the second week in a row, Alcaraz will take on Cam Norrie. In the first semi of the day, the British lefthander beat Bernabe Zapata Miralles in a third-set tiebreaker, a particularly impressive run to the finals for Norrie given that clay is the surface he’s least comfortable on. Tennis player logic dictates that Norrie was no doubt happy to see Alcaraz play the second semi and labor for nearly three hours. But as Alcaraz showed in today’s match, humans have their sluggish moments. For champions, though, they just don’t last very long.