Carlos Alcaraz gives himself as many moments of joy as he brings to his country.
Posted at 3:24 p.m.
Seven days after winning his maiden Grand Slam title, the world No. 1 defeated Kwon Soon-woo in straight sets to secure Spain victory over South Korea, propel them top of Group B and dispatch in the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup.
The United States Open champion clenched his fists and let out a shout of delight after Kwon hit his forehand off the court, cementing the aged player’s 6-4, 7-6(1) win 19 in front of an already won over crowd in Valencia on Sunday.
It was Alcaraz’s first win since beating Casper Ruud in the final at Flushing Meadows last Sunday. He then became the youngest tennis player to top the ATP rankings since records began in 1973.
Alcaraz sat out Spain’s one-sided 3-0 win over Serbia at the competition’s opener on Wednesday, losing to Quebec’s Félix Auger-Aliassime in a 2- 1 against Canada on Friday.
Roberto Bautista Agut set the tone for the day for Spain by beating Hong Seong-chan 6-1, 6-3. Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez were next to face Nam Ji-sung and Song Min-kyu in doubles.
Alcaraz’s victory propelled Spain to the quarter-finals in November. He and his compatriots will once again be on favorable ground, since the quarter-finals will all take place in the south of the country, in Malaga.
Three other cities — Bologna in Italy, Hamburg, Germany and Glasgow, Scotland — have hosted Davis Cup group stage matches.