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Carlos Alcaraz thrashed Arthur Fils inside 50 minutes to maintain his unbeaten start to 2026 and win the Qatar Open in Doha.<\/b><\/p>\n
Spanish top seed Alcaraz was ruthless from start to finish, converting five out of seven break points, as he blew France’s Fils away in a 6-2 6-1 victory.<\/p>\n
The win – the shortest of Alcaraz’s career in completed matches – was his 12th of the season as he followed up last month’s Australian Open triumph with his 26th career title. <\/p>\n
“I came this year hungry for more,” said Alcaraz, 22, who lost in the quarter-final of the Qatar Open last year. <\/p>\n
“It’s been a really strong start to the year. It wasn’t easy, I had to be strong mentally with my team. I’m just playing great tennis and I’m really happy about this week. This trophy means a lot to me.”<\/p>\n
Victory against unseeded Fils comes just 20 days after Alcaraz became the youngest man in history to complete the Career Grand Slam in Melbourne.<\/p>\n
The seven-time Grand Slam-winner set the tone from the start as he broke Fils’ serve in the first game before speeding through the first set in only 28 minutes.<\/p>\n
Alcaraz’s dominance continued into the second set and a double break to go 3-0 up prompted Fils’ frustrations to boil over as the Frenchman smashed his racquet.<\/p>\n
Fils got on the board in his next service game, inducing cheers from the crowd, but it proved to be a consolation as Alcaraz’s dominance in the rallies saw him go on to secure the second set in only 24 minutes.<\/p>\n
Alcaraz fired 18 winners during the course of the match, compared to Fils’ three, and didn’t concede a single break point.<\/p>\n
The victory in 50 minutes eclipses last year’s shortest final, when Norway’s Casper Ruud beat Ugo Humbert, of France, 6-2 6-3 in 68 minutes at the Nordic Open in Stockholm.<\/p>\n
World number 40 Fils, who missed around eight months last year with a back injury, saw the funny side as he paid tribute to Alcaraz.<\/p>\n
“You played very good, you’re a hell of a champion, it’s a joke,” he said.<\/p>\n
“Congrats to your team and to you, you did an unbelievable job.”<\/p>\n<\/div>\n