Staff Reporter.
@RolandGarros.
Defending championship Carlos Alcaraz overcame a second-set lull to beat Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan 6-1 4-6 6-1 6-2 on Wednesday afternoon.
Alcaraz turned in style in the third and fourth sets to claim victory in two hours and 11 minutes.
Victory was Alcaraz’s 17th in 18 matches on clay this year as he looks to become the first man since compatriot Rafael Nadal in 2020 to retain the Roland Garros title.
“In the second set, he started to play much better and he was really aggressive. He didn’t miss at all so it was a little difficult to deal with his game in the second set,” said the 22-year-old.
“But I’m really happy I stayed strong and refreshed myself. I started to play better and better which helped me have a really good last two sets.”
Alcaraz will face France’s 31st seed Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard or Bosnia’s Damir Dzumhur in the third round.
Elsewhere Italian eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti went through to the third round with a 6-4 6-0 6-4 win against Colombia’s Daniel Galan.
Musetti will face Argentine Mariano Navone after his 6-1 7-6 (7-1) 6-3 victory against American Reilly Opelka.