‘One of my toughest matches outside of the Grand Slams’, says Carlos Alcaraz after beating Dan Evans
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World No. 2 Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrating after winning his match against Daniel Evans of Britain at the Shanghai Masters tennis tournament on Monday.
PHOTO: EPA-EFE
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SHANGHAI – Carlos Alcaraz negotiated a tricky tie against Britain’s 33rd-ranked Dan Evans, prevailing 7-6 (7-1), 6-4 to book a spot in the last 16 of the Shanghai Masters on Monday.
Said the world No. 2 after the encounter which lasted almost 2½ hours: “It was a really tough match.
“It was one of the toughest matches I have played outside of the Grand Slams.
“Every time I play Dan it is a tricky match and I have to play my best to beat him...
“Both of us played a high quality of tennis and I am really happy to get through.”
Next up for the Spaniard is a meeting with former world No. 3 Grigor Dimitrov.
Earlier, wild card Diego Schwartzman knocked American world No. 8 Taylor Fritz out in a thrilling third-set tiebreak.
The diminutive Argentinian has seen his ranking slide from eighth in the world to 130th, but played his best tennis to topple Fritz 6-4, 3-6, 7-6 (7-5).
The rankings and age gaps were hardly noticeable over a three-hour skirmish which saw Schwartzman playing up to the crowd, encouraging them to whoop and cheer for him.
In contrast, an error-prone Fritz seemed increasingly flustered, pinging his racket off the ground in irritation at one point.
The 25-year-old American was caught off guard from the beginning, falling behind by four games in the opening set.
When he hit the ball into the net to seal his defeat, Schwartzman threw both arms in the air and screamed for joy.
“I think it was a great match,” the 31-year-old said at the end.
“At some point he started to serve much better, so it was very difficult for me.”
He profusely thanked the tournament organisers for giving him the wild card, admitting it was “not his best year” up to now. Next up for him is Chilean Nicolas Jarry.
Fan favourite Dimitrov also moved through to the last 16, after overcoming a torrential downpour and a well-matched opponent in Russian Karen Khachanov to win 7-6 (8-6), 6-4.
The match had to be suspended at 6-6 in the first set after the heavens opened and doused centre court.
Once the Qizhong Tennis Centre roof had been closed and a host of volunteers had towelled and blow-dried the court, world No. 19 Dimitrov inched a tight tiebreak and followed that by taking the second set.
“I knew it was going to be a very competitive match... (Khachanov’s) hungry and he’s so competitive – but so am I,” said the 32-year-old Bulgarian after his win.
“I think the first set was very close on both ends. I think I had the edge early on and in the match. I thought I was controlling a lot but somehow he was coming back.
“Great serves, great movement, great shots, but I had to stay focused and that was the most important thing. When I had opportunities to be more aggressive, I had to do it.”
There was heartbreak for French 19-year-old Arthur Fils, who came from a set down against world No. 12 Tommy Paul to win a tiebreak in the second set.
The emerging star – who won his maiden ATP Tour title in Lyon in May – started strong in the third set, breaking Paul’s serve to win the first game.
The players were level at the eighth game, but the American snatched the last two to win 6-4, 6-7 (7-9), 6-4.
Fils’ compatriot Adrian Mannarino was dismissed 6-3, 6-0 by world No. 7 Andrey Rublev in just an hour. The Russian will face Paul in the last 16.
Jannik Sinner, who knocked Alcaraz out in the China Open semi-finals in Beijing last week, has already clinched his spot.
But defending champion Daniil Medvedev suffered a shock defeat at the hands of 26th-ranked Sebastian Korda on Sunday.
The American will next face Argentina’s Francisco Cerundolo on Tuesday, while Sinner is up against the US’ Ben Shelton. AFP
