Carlos Alcaraz on Thursday overcame a second-set wobble to defeat Laslo Djere 6-2, 6-4 and reach the Barcelona Open quarter-finals.
The world No. 2 stepped up a gear from his first-round win over Ethan Quinn to dispatch his 80th-ranked opponent on the Catalan clay as he prepares for his French Open title defense.
Alcaraz, who triumphed at the Monte Carlo Masters on Sunday, has had an inconsistent start to the year and in March fell at the first hurdle at the Miami Open.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Home favorite Alcaraz saved both break points he faced in a first-set stroll, with Djere unable to produce a single winner to the Spaniard’s eight.
The four-time Grand Slam winner won five games straight to claim a 5-1 first-set lead and sealed it with his second set point.
In the second set, Djere offered more of a fight and even broke for a 4-2 lead, but Alcaraz bounced back quickly.
Photo: EPA-EFE
Djere could not handle the Spaniard in full flow and crumbled away as Alcaraz won the final four games to triumph, sealing his win when the Serb pushed a shot into the net.
“After going 4-2 down in the second, I played a bit more like what my level is,” Alcaraz said. “I am very happy that I could step up my level and seem more like my best, and I want to continue.”
Alcaraz was to face world No. 7 Alex de Minaur in the quarter-finals yesterday after the Australian eased to a 6-1, 6-2 victory over Jacob Fearnley in just over an hour.
“It’s very positive for the tournament that all the favorites are in the quarter-finals,” Alcaraz said. “I don’t know if it’s more or less difficult than in previous years, but it’s going to be a battle from now on.”
Briton Fearnley, competing on the red dirt for the first time this week, made 28 unforced errors and was unable to convert either of his two break points.
The Scot got into the main draw as a lucky loser, but was able to earn his first win on clay against Roberto Carballes Baena in the first round.
Earlier, in-form Alejandro Davidovich Fokina defeated world No. 8 Andrey Rublev 7-5, 6-4.
The Spaniard, ranked 30th, had never beaten the Russian before, but triumphed at the sixth time of asking in straight sets.
Monte Carlo semi-finalist Davidovich Fokina broke three times in a topsy-turvy first set, with Rublev twice reacting before the Malaga native held to love in the 12th game.
Rublev went a break down in the first game of the second set, but despite securing one of his own for 2-2, he was once again broken as Davidovich Fokina took a 5-4 lead and then served out for the match, again to love.
Spain’s Jaume Munar came up short against Karen Khachanov, who also won 7-5, 6-4, and was to face Davidovich Fokina.
The Russian, who trains in Barcelona, only converted four of 15 break points, but eventually put the battling Munar to bed.
Defending champion Casper Ruud was to face Holger Rune and last year’s runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas was to take on the exciting Arthur Fils in yesterday’s other quarter-finals.
Top seeds Alexander Zverev of Germany and American Coco Gauff on Tuesday advanced to the third round of the Canadian Open after both players were pushed hard by their opponents. World No. 3 Zverev, playing in his first match since his first-round loss at Wimbledon, was far from his best, but emerged with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-4 win over Adam Walton under the lights in Toronto. Momentum shifted firmly in Zverev’s favor when he won a 52-shot rally in the first set tiebreak and he sealed the win on a double fault by the Australian in the second set. “It was a very
TAIWANESE EXITS: Fellow Australian Christopher O’Connell joined Tristan Schoolkate as a winner following his 6-1, 6-2 defeat of Tseng Hsin-chun Australian qualifier Tristan Schoolkate on Monday dispatched rising Brazilian talent Joao Fonseca 7-6 (7/5), 6-4 at the ATP Toronto Masters, ensuring a breakthrough into the world top 100. The 24-year-old from Perth moved to 98th in the ongoing live rankings as he claimed his biggest career victory by knocking out the ATP NextGen champion from November last year. Schoolkate, son of a tennis coach, won his first match over a top-50 opponent on his sixth attempt as he ousted the world No. 49 teenager from Brazil. The qualifier played a quarter-final this month in Los Cabos and won through qualifying for his
Formula 1 champion Max Verstappen on Thursday said that he is staying with the Red Bull team next year, ending months of speculation over his future. “Some people just like to stir the pot, some people just like to create drama, but, for me, it’s always been quite clear, and also for next year,” the four-time champion said ahead of the Hungarian Grand Prix. “I’m discussing with the team already the plans — the things that we want to change for next year, so that means that I’m also staying with the team for next year,” he said. Verstappen has a contract with
Alex Michelsen on Thursday rallied for a 3-6, 7-6 (7/4), 6-4 upset victory over third-seeded Lorenzo Musetti in the men’s singles, converting his seventh match point to reach the fourth round of the Canadian Open. Michelsen reached the last 16 of a Masters 1000 for the first time with his second win over a top-10 player in eight attempts. The 20-year-old American survived nearly 50 unforced errors and converted just two of nine break chances, but it was enough to vanquish Italy’s Musetti, a two-time Grand Slam semi-finalist ranked 10th in the world. “It feels really good,” the 26th-ranked Michelsen said. “I’ve put
RSS