On Tuesday, Carlos Alcaraz, the defending champion of the Madrid Open, played against Alexander Zverev in the fourth round of the tournament. Alcaraz defeated Zverev 6-1, 6-2, securing his spot in the quarterfinals and maintaining his chances of defending his title.
Alcaraz played a dominant game from the start, not conceding any break opportunities to Zverev. He converted on four of the ten break chances he had, ending the match with 21 winners and 12 unforced errors. In contrast, Zverev only had nine winners and 22 unforced errors.
Speaking about his performance, Alcaraz said, “For me, it’s amazing to play the level that I played today. I feel really good right now, and this match gives me a lot of confidence.” He also added that he played a complete match, kept attacking, and didn’t let Zverev take control, especially on his serve.
This victory came after both second-seeded Daniil Medvedev and fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev lost their fourth-round matches at the clay-court tournament. Medvedev lost to 121st-ranked qualifier Aslan Karatsev 7-6 (1), 6-4, while Rublev lost to his doubles partner and fellow Russian Karen Khachanov 7-6 (8), 6-4.
Medvedev complained about the small dimensions of the Arantxa Sanchez Vicario court, saying he should have played on the center court as the No. 2 seed. Karatsev, a former No. 14 in the world and a semifinalist at the Australian Open in 2021, won his first victory against a top-10 opponent since last year.
On the other hand, Khachanov saved two set points in the tiebreaker to win his first match against a top-10 opponent on clay since 2019. Rublev, who won his first Masters 1000 title in Monte Carlo three weeks ago, lost to Khachanov in straight sets.
In another match, Daniel Altmaier defeated Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-0, and reached the quarterfinals.
Overall, the tournament has seen some surprising results, with several top seeds being knocked out early. However, Alcaraz’s performance has been impressive so far, and he will be hoping to continue his good form and defend his title at home.
