Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz lit up the Ariake Coliseum in their sixth meeting, but the Japan Open final was far from smooth sailing. Fritz had just snapped Alcaraz’s 13-match winning streak at the Laver Cup and was chasing a second Tokyo crown. While Alcaraz, making his debut, vowed to “come up with a plan” to take him down, which he did with a 6-4, 6-4 victory. But there was a point in the match when Fritz stared down three break points at 2-2 but dug deep to hold for 3-2, and that gritty stand sparked the first flash of drama. Alcaraz erupted at chair umpire Fergus Murphy over a time violation, his frustration boiling over.

Midway through the first set, while sitting down at the change of ends, Alcaraz expressed his frustration after receiving a time violation in the previous game.

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