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.
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen has become the first female player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after the Golden State Valkyries selected her in the third and final round of the league’s draft on Monday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship earlier this month. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament’s most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as
College basketballer Kaitlyn Chen (陳凱玲) has become the first player of Taiwanese descent to be drafted by a WNBA team, after being selected by the Golden State Valkyries in the third and final round of the league's draft yesterday. Chen, a point guard who played her first three seasons in college for Princeton University, transferred to the University of Connecticut (UConn) for her final season, which culminated in a national championship on April 6. While at Princeton, Chen was named the Ivy League tournament's most outstanding player three times from 2022 to last year. Prior to the draft, ESPN described Chen as a
Japan yesterday secured a second consecutive Billie Jean King Cup finals appearance with a 2-1 win over 2023 champions Canada, thanks to Ena Shibahara and Shuko Aoyama’s 6-3, 5-7, 6-2 win over Kayla Cross and Rebecca Marino in the qualifying doubles decider. Shibahara and Aoyama powered through the opening set 6-3, breaking twice for a quick 3-0 lead. Cross and Marino hit back in the second, edging it 7-5 to level the match, before the Japanese pair regained control in the third. Canada’s 18-year-old Victoria Mboko edged Shibahara 6-4, 6-7 (8/10), 7-5 in a marathon opening clash. Mboko fired eight aces to
Kumar Rocker, a first-round pick in both the 2021 and 2022 drafts, on Thursday won for the first time in the major leagues. Rocker struck out a career-best eight in a career-best seven innings as the Texas Rangers beat the Los Angeles Angels 5-3 to complete a three-game sweep. Rocker (1-2) threw a career-high 78 pitches and allowed three runs on five hits without a walk. The 25-year-old right-hander was drafted third overall by Texas in 2022, a year after concerns over a physical led to him going unsigned by the New York Mets as the 10th overall pick. He made his major
RSS