“That’s not a forehand…” – Inside a viral Alcaraz-Tsitsipas practice session in Miami

It’s no secret: Stefanos Tsitsipas has taken his share of lumps when facing Carlos Alcaraz. The Greek has lost all three times he has faced the Spanish wunderkind, logging losses at the 2021 US Open, 2022 Miami Open and 2022 Barcelona Open.

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Tennis Majors

On Thursday Tennis Majors was on hand as the third-ranked Greek took some cracks at his potential final opponent on the Miami Open practice courts. The results were… fabulous.

What we saw: This stunning point, won by Tsitsipas

What we know: The pair played a practice set, and a tiebreak

There were plenty of real ATP matches on the order of play on Thursday in Miami, but many fans chose to head to the practice courts to watch four of the biggest names on the ATP Tour practice side by side. Alcaraz and Tsitsipas were hitting next to Daniil Medvedev and Grigor Dimitrov, who were grinding on the court just next to them.

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Tennis Majors

Who won?

Not that it matters – it was practice after all – but Alcaraz won the set, 6-4, before the pair elected to spend the rest of their practice playing a tiebreak.

What did Tsitsipas think of that forehand?

Well, he didn’t think it was a forehand… But he must have liked it because he tweeted it.

How did the rivals get along?

The mood was extremely light-hearted with a friendly vibe – not at all like their tense battle last spring in Barcelona.

When will Alcaraz and Tsitsipas play in Miami?

Defending champion Alcaraz plays Argentina’s Facundo Bagnis on Hard Rock Stadium on Friday. His match will be third up, after Fritz v Nava.

Tsitsipas will kick off his campaign on Saturday, against either Richard Gasquet or Christopher O’Connell.