Preview Laver Cup Day Two: Taylor Fritz faces massive task against Carlos Alcaraz as Team World fights to stay alive

This Saturday, September 20, will be Day Two of the Laver Cup, with a high-stakes duel between the No. 1s of Team Europe and Team World, with Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz taking all the focus. Other big names will take the court, including Alexander Zverev, Holger Rune, Alex De Minaur, and Alex Michelsen, among the stars who will face off in three other singles matches and a doubles match to close the day.

Remember that the tournament's scoring system means that each win on the first day is worth one point, victories on the second day are worth two points, and wins on the third day are worth three points. The first team to reach 13 points will be the champion. For now, Team Europe is ahead 3-1.

Zverev and De Minaur to kick off day two

The No. 2 singles players from each team will open the day. Zverev is currently world No. 3, while De Minaur is No. 8 in the ATP Rankings, and they will give us the first match between top 10 players in this Laver Cup. Zverev is the player with the most appearances in the tournament (6), the most singles matches won in the Laver Cup (7 so far), and the most singles points won (17).

The German and the Australian have 10 previous encounters, with Zverev leading the head-to-head 8-2. Interestingly, De Minaur's two wins came in team tournaments (ATP Cup 2020 and United Cup 2024), which could be a good sign for him on this occasion.

Rune and Cerundolo renew rivalry in second-ever meeting

The second match of the day will have world No. 11 Holger Rune making his grand debut in the tournament against Argentina's Francisco Cerundolo (No. 21), who is making his third appearance in the Laver Cup. This will be the second encounter between Rune and Cerundolo in their careers, with the previous one back in 2023 at Roland Garros (fourth round), a victory for the Dane in a controversial duel that was decided in a fifth-set tiebreak.

Rune is looking to build confidence after an inconsistent period in recent months, being eliminated in the second round of the US Open and falling out of the top 10. This will be a good chance for the Dane to test his level in preparation for the final part of the season, where one of his goals is to finish the year in the top 10.

Clash of the No. 1s: Alcaraz and Fritz face off

Carlos Alcaraz and Taylor Fritz are the No. 1s of each team, so this will be a key match, especially considering that Europe already has an advantage after the first day. If the first two matches of the day do not go in favor of Team World, the pressure on Fritz will be enormous against the current world No. 1. Both already took the court in doubles on the first day—Alcaraz with Mensik and Fritz with Michelsen.

They have three previous encounters, with Alcaraz winning each of their previous matches, one of them precisely in the 2024 Laver Cup, where the six-time major champion took the victory in straight sets. After facing each other in the Wimbledon semifinals this year, Fritz will try to surprise Alcaraz to keep Team World's hopes alive.

Doubles Decider: Rune and Ruud Take on De Minaur and Michelsen

The players in charge of the doubles will be Holger Rune and Casper Ruud for the Europeans, and Alex De Minaur and Alex Michelsen for Team World. There is not much to say about this matchup, as none of them have much doubles experience, nor have they played together previously. It will be crucial for each player to stay strong on their serve. It's an open match for anyone, but it will have a significant impact on the development of the series between the two teams.