"Time flies": Carlos Alcaraz harks back to childhood with Holger Rune after Barcelona Open defeat

Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz has stated that he is ‘happy’ to see how far he and Denmark’s Holger Rune have come in the sport. The two faced each other in the final of the Barcelona Open, where the Danish tennis star came out on top in straight sets with a score of 7-6, 6-2.

After the match, Alcaraz stated that he is proud of how far he and Rune have come as they have been playing together since they were 12 years old. He also praised his opponent for having an ‘amazing’ week after he was forced to retire from the Monte-Carlo Masters.

“Congratulations for an amazing week,” said Alcaraz. “Coming from Monte Carlo where you had to retire, coming here to Barcelona.. showing great tennis. For the people to enjoy. I appreciate that. I have to say congrats to you and your team. We’ve been seeing each other since 12 years old. Time flies. I’m happy to see us in this position… How far we’ve come together. Congratulations and keep going.”

On the other hand, Rune, who managed to secure his second win over the Spaniard in four meetings, stated that the title means ‘the world’ to him. “It means the world, it was such a great match,” said Rune as quoted by ATP’s official website. “In the beginning, I was a little bit stressed, because Carlos obviously plays big-time tennis. I had to breathe a lot and find my rhythm. After he broke me, I got more into the match and played my tennis. The first set was a big battle, it was super important to win it and gain the momentum. I’m so proud of myself. When I got broken in the first set, I thought to myself that I don’t need to hit every shot on the line. So I [asked] myself: ‘What did Novak do when he beat him?’ I played it in my mind, the Olympics final, and tried to play that style, making a lot of balls. I’m very happy with how I stayed composed when it mattered, and I was really brave.”