Luciano Darderi already has Carlos Alcaraz in his sights
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Winning debut at the Us Open for Luciano Darderi, who took only an hour and 24 minutes to score the first victory of his career at Flushing Meadows, against Australia’s Hijikata.
“I didn“t expect to play at this level, coming back from an injury is always difficult, especially on cement which is not my surface. But today, honestly, I felt for the first time in many years very solid on the court, and for that I am very happy. We were both coming back from an injury, the first few games were a bit complex, but I managed the match very well. The serve made the difference today, it was the key to the match.”
“I have very few hours of tennis on concrete, but my game is also adapted to this surface: I shoot hard with my serve, while on the response I struggle a bit more, because the ball comes in a very different way than on clay. But today’s match gives me confidence, playing three sets at this level, against a player who knows the surface well, is a good sign. The most difficult thing in the adaptation phase are the movements: moving on concrete compared to clay is very different, it also changes the tempo on the ball, which splashes more. Sometimes you have to play more inside the court, changing your game a little bit.”
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