Carlos Alcaraz Advances to Quarterfinals in Beijing, Closes in on Number One Rank

Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz in an archive image during the China Tennis Open. (EFE/MARK R. CRISTINO)

Carlos Alcaraz debuted last Friday at the ATP 500 in Beijing. It was the first time this tournament had been held since 2019 due to the coronavirus pandemic. For the Spaniard, this Asian tour has a lot of value, not only because it is another debut, but because it helps him get closer to Novak Djokovic in his quest to regain number one. The Serbian, who is very fond of this competition, decided that he would not be in Beijing or Shanghai this season, which brings Alcaraz closer to number one.

The Spaniard beat the German Yannick Hanfmann in his debut in Beijing. He had not played a match since the US Open semifinal match, where he was eliminated against Medvedev. They faced the 53rd in the world, but who had already beaten several top 10 this season, such as Taylor Fritz or Stefanos Tsitsipas. The match was closed by Carlitos with a resounding 6-4 and 6-3.

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The victory gave him a place in the round of 16, where he faced the Italian Lorenzo Musetti. He won by a double 6-2, in just under an hour and a half. This victory gave them a place in the quarterfinals, where they will have to face Casper Ruud. The Norwegian, who occupies ninth position in the ATP ranking, landed in the Chinese capital as the seventh seed. The last meeting between the two was in the final of the 2022 US Open, when Carlos Alcaraz won his first Grand Slam in the New York tournament.

Ruud is not having his best season. He started in third place in the ATP rankings, but victories have not smiled this year for the Norwegian. His greatest achievement was reaching the final of Roland Garros, for the second time in a row, although on no occasion has he managed to lift the crown. The rest of the season, at the Australian Open, Indian Wells or Miami, Ruud has not achieved a string of more than two consecutive victories, which caused him to drop to seventh position, which he currently occupies.

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Number one and number nine will face each other this Monday, October 2, no earlier than 1:00 p.m. (peninsular time), on the Lotus Track, the second center in Beijing. It will be the last match for this court, before three more matches will be played, one of them will be played by the Spanish Sara Sorribes, who faces the number two in the WTA, Iga Swiatek.

The quarterfinal match between Carlos Alcaraz and Casper Ruud can be followed in Spain through Movistar Plus, on one of its channels: #Vamos, Movistar+ or Movistar Deportes.

2023-10-02 07:18:00
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