French Open 2022: After 'roller coaster' clash, Alcaraz eyes 'big battles' against the best

Spanish teenage sensation Carlos Alcaraz saved a match point to make a comeback from 3-0 down in the final set to defeat compatriot Albert Ramos-Vinolas and seal a berth in the French Open 2022 third round on Wednesday.

Also read: French Open 2022: Nadal lauds crowd at Roland Garros after 300th Grand Slam match win

The 19-year-old sixth seed tipped to break idol Rafael Nadal and defending champion Novak Djokovic's stronghold at Roland Garros triumphed 6-1, 6-7 (7/9), 5-7, 7-6 (7/2), 6-4 in a four-hour 34-minute epic. Alcaraz, bidding to become only the eighth teenager to win a Grand Slam men's title, hit a matching 74 winners and 74 unforced errors on Court Simonne-Mathieu.

After playing the longest match of his career yet, Alcaraz took to Instagram to congratulate Vinolas and express his joy over surviving an early scare in the Paris Grand Slam. "😀😫😬😏😶😚! A 4h34m rollercoaster! Reaching the third round of @rolandgarros like 🥵! Congrats to @albertramosvinolas on the match! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Great battle!" he wrote.

The Spaniard also admitted that he feels physically and mentally strong and is ready to play such kind of clashes in big tournaments. "I'm still young, but I would say a pretty experienced player now. I feel comfortable playing in big stadiums, big matches, playing in Grand Slams. Physically and mentally, I'm strong. I think I'm ready to play these kinds of matches in these situations and these tournaments," Alcaraz stated.

"In the fourth and fifth sets, I smiled with my team. So I enjoy the battles. I want to play big battles and tough battles against the best players in the world," added the teenager, who No. 27 seed Sebastian Korda in the next round.