Peter Staples/ATP Tour
David Goffin celebrates his second career win over Carlos Alcaraz.
By ATP Staff
David Goffin handed Carlos Alcaraz his second straight defeat with a stunning comeback Friday night at the Miami Open presented by Itau. The 34-year-old Belgian showed class and veteran composure in a 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 victory, making the second seed pay for an error-strewn opening performance at the ATP Masters 1000 event.
Goffin, who has now notched three consecutive wins against Top 3 players, improved to 2-1 in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series against Alcaraz, 13 years his junior, with the upset. He previously beat the 21-year-old in Astana in 2022 and World No. 3 Alexander Zverev last October in Shanghai.
"It feels amazing. Sometimes some matches are tough and you have to fight, like the first round, and you're happy to have a second round like that in a stadium," said Goffin, who also came from a set down to beat Aleksandar Vukic in his Miami opener. "That's why I continue to play tennis, to have that kind of match in a stadium, to play some good tennis.
"[I was] just trying to enjoy the moment... I felt that physically I was ready to fight and then I was feeling the ball really well, so it's the kind of night that you feel great and you're happy to fight, you enjoy every point and at the end it's it's a perfect end with a great match point. It was amazing."
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Goffin takes the win over Alcaraz 5-7 6-4 6-3 🔥@miamiopen | #MiamiOpen pic.twitter.com/N3vXDP3CB2
Goffin is through to the Miami third round for the first time since 2019 after becoming the first man to defeat a top two seed in the event's opening round since David Ferrer beat Zverev that same year. He is also the first player outside the Top 30 in the PIF ATP Rankings to beat Alcaraz this season.
The Belgian led by a break in all three sets and made his advantage count in the second and third. Content to counterpunch at times against the superior power of his opponent, Goffin expertly picked his spots to attack and repeatedly left Alcaraz stranded at the net as he turned the match around.
"I think it was key to be aggressive from the return, especially on his second serve," said Goffin, who won 45 per cent (15/33) of his second-serve return points. "Sometimes he hits the target on the first serve and you cannot do anything. The key was, even if I missed, I had to be aggressive. Because otherwise, if I'm just too passive, then he has his forehand or... he has everything. If you're too passive, then you're dead."
Goffin won 17 of his 24 net points, according to Infosys ATP Stats, while Alcaraz committed 43 unforced errors — including 28 on the forehand wing that also let him down against Draper in Indian Wells.
Goffin will next take on American Brandon Nakashima, the No. 32 in the PIF ATP Rankings, on Sunday after the American's 6-4, 4-6, 6-3 result against Roberto Carballes Baena.
With the defeat, Alcaraz's hopes of returning to No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings following the tournament were dashed. The 2022 Miami champion needed to win this year's title and have Zverev exit early in order to pass the German for World No. 2. Alcaraz is not in danger of losing his position at No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings this month despite suffering just his third opening defeat at an ATP Masters 1000.
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