Alcaraz innovates and enthrals to survive epic thriller

PARIS－This was the sort of point in the sort of contest that, if 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz eventually reaches the heights so many believe he will, those in attendance at Court Simonne Mathieu on Wednesday night just might regale dinner guests for years with tales that begin, "We were there when..."

Not, mind you, the match point Alcaraz saved in his second-round French Open marathon against Albert Ramos-Vinolas, a fellow Spaniard who is 15 years his elder. That one, necessary as it was to the eventual 6-1, 6-7 (7), 5-7, 7-6 (2), 6-4 outcome in the No 6-seeded Alcaraz's favor, was rather mundane: a three-stroke exchange that ended with Ramos-Vinolas pushing a nervy forehand into the net while serving for the win at 5-4 in the fourth set.

No, instead, let's examine what happened on a break point at 4-all in the fifth, with Alcaraz leading, Ramos-Vinolas serving, the crowd holding its breath and the stadium clock already reading 4 hours, 31 minutes. On the sixth of what would become 15 strokes, Alcaraz tried one of his feathery drop shots. Ramos-Vinolas got to it and responded by sending the ball off the baseline, forcing Alcaraz to race to his left to flick a no-look backhand lob.