Carlos Alcaraz failed in the quarterfinals of the ATP Masters in Madrid against Andrey Rublev. The tournament winner from 2022 and 2023 lost to the world number eight from Russia 6:4, 3:6 and 2:6. For the 20-year-old Alcaraz, it was only his second defeat in his fourth participation in the tournament. Jannik Sinner, second in the world rankings, withdrew from the tournament on Wednesday.
Alcaraz, who had to miss the clay court tournaments in Monte Carlo and Barcelona due to a right arm injury, controlled the first set. However, Rublev fought back. “I think the serve saved me a lot of times, but the key was that it was one of my first matches where I was completely quiet the whole match, I didn’t say a word even when I lost,” he said 26 year old.
Alcaraz, third in the world rankings, appeared increasingly tired as the game progressed in cool temperatures and the roof of the “Caja Magica” was closed. Rublew managed breaks in the first and fifth games of the deciding set. The Russian hit 30 winners and Alcaraz looked exhausted after his three-set win against Jan-Lennard Struff in the round of 16, which lasted almost three hours.
A few minutes after Alcaraz’s exit, the tournament management announced via X that Sinner (Italy) would no longer compete in Madrid due to a hip injury. The quarter-final against Felix Auger-Aliassime (Canada) planned for Thursday will not take place.
2024-05-01 17:39:00
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