Carlos Alcaraz tops Alex de Minaur to win first indoor title in Rotterdam debut

Carlos Alcaraz won his first title of 2025 at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam on Sunday with a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 triumph over No. 3 seed Alex de Minaur.

The top seed shook off a cold, for which he wore a nasal strip to help his breathing during matches, to pick up five wins at the Rotterdam Ahoy, three of which went to three sets. To capture his first-ever indoor title, Alcaraz topped de Minaur for a third time in three career meetings in one hour and 54 minutes.

Alcaraz last won a title in October, at the ATP 500 China Open.

“This week has been a really good week all together,” Alcaraz said post-match. “Putting in really good work. Coming here [not] feeling 100% well with the cold, but after every day, I'm feeling better and better. Rotterdam has been a really special week for me. I was going to say not only for the title… but for the support that I received here since the first day.

"It was the first time that I [was] playing here and [the fans] made it like I've been playing this tournament for a long time.”

Last year, Alcaraz became the first man to win ATP 500-level titles on clay, grass and hard courts, and his first title indoors is the 17th of his career. He soared to the trophy thanks to dominant performance returning de Minaur's serve in the final set, after not breaking at all in set two.

Alcaraz won the match's last four games, breaking serve twice, and never faced a break point himself in the third to become the first Spanish champion in the tournament’s 52-year history. His coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, was the finalist in 2004, while Rafael Nadal was runner-up to Andy Murray in 2009.

Australia's de Minaur, meanwhile, has now been runner-up in Rotterdam two years in a row. Nonetheless, he will return to a career-high world No. 6 when the latest ATP rankings are released on Monday.

"It's been two years now with this runner-up trophy. I'm hoping I'll get my hand on the winners' one day," the Aussie said.