Carlos Alcaraz moves past De Minaur to win maiden indoor title in Rotterdam

Carlos Alcaraz capped a dream debut at the ABN AMRO Open in Rotterdam Sunday, when he clinched his maiden indoor title.

The top seed stood firm for a 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 triumph over Alex de Minaur in the championship match at the ATP 500 event, becoming the first Spanish champion in the tournament’s 52-year history. De Minaur forced Alcaraz into his third deciding set of the week with a gutsy surge in form, but the 21-year-old regained his rhythm to secure a 17th tour-level title after one hour, 54 minutes.

“This week has been a really good week all together,” Alcaraz said to his team. “Putting in really good work. Coming here [not] feeling 100 per cent well with the cold but after every day I’m feeling better and better. Rotterdam has been a really special week for me. I was going to say not only for the title… yeah for the title as well, but for the support that I received here since the first day.

“It was the first time that I [was] playing here and you made it like I’ve been playing this tournament for a long time.”

Alcaraz last year became the first player to win ATP 500 titles on clay, grass and hard courts, and has now added a first indoor triumph to his resume, improving to 17-5 in finals. The Spaniard also moved to a 3-0 lead in his Lexus ATP Head2Head series with De Minaur, all three of which have come at ATP 500 level.

After falling short in the quarter-finals at the Australian Open to Novak Djokovic last month, Alcaraz is up and running in 2025. The four-time major winner’s triumph in Rotterdam is his first trophy since defeating rival Jannik Sinner in the Beijing final last October.

With his run to a second consecutive final in Rotterdam, De Minaur will return to his career high of No. 6 in the PIF ATP Rankings on Monday. The 25-year-old, who was chasing his 10th tour-level title, was unable to hold off Alcaraz, who roared back in a relentless deciding set.

“We’re pushing for bigger and better things,” De Minaur of his team. “It’s been a lot of improvements in my game over the last couple years and I’m going to keep on pushing for more. It’s been two years now with this runner-up trophy. I’m hoping I’ll get my hand on the winners’ one day.”

Bidding to extend his impressive record in championship matches, Alcaraz regrouped in the decider, where he reasserted his dominance on the occasion. The Spaniard bided his time before reeling off five of the last six games to clinch a 17th trophy, passing his coach Juan Carlos Ferrero’s count of 16.