(Reuters) – Spanish 14th seed Carlos Alcaraz capped a dream run at the Miami Open with a 7-5 6-4 win over Norwegian world number eight Casper Ruud in the final on Sunday to secure his first ATP Masters 1000 crown.
Alcaraz was roughed up by Ruud in the early stages of the match between the two up-and-coming players but roared back from a 4-1 deficit to take the opener with an overhead smash on his third set point.
From there, the 18-year-old Spaniard refused to relinquish control as he broke Ruud twice to jump ahead 3-0 in the second set and went on to became the youngest champion in the 37-year-old tournament’s history when he coolly served out the match to love in the final game.
The victory marked Alcaraz’s third ATP Tour title following triumphs at the Rio Open in February and his win at Umag last July when he became the youngest tour-level champion since Kei Nishikori won at Delray Beach in 2008.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto; Editing by Toby Davis)
