MADRID, 16 (EUROPA PRESS)
Spanish tennis player Carlos Alcaraz eliminated (6-3, 4-6, 7-5) Russian Andrey Rublev to reach the semifinals of the Cincinnati tournament, the seventh ATP Masters 1000 of the season, a demanding match where he had to manage the tension of both to stay firm, and will face German Alexander Zverev in search of the final.
The Murcian continued his strong run, with the Wimbledon final loss to Jannik Sinner increasingly fading into the background, at least until a hypothetical final in Ohio against the Italian. To do so, Alcaraz will have to overcome German Alexander Zverev, who defeated American Ben Shelton (6-2, 6-2) in the penultimate round; and the world number one, the surprising Frenchman Terence Atmane in his semifinal.
The world number two didn't fall into Rublev's trap, who started unhinged, found his level, and once again couldn't handle the tension to surrender with a double fault. Alcaraz went all out, but had to regain his best form against the ropes after a turnaround in favor of the Russian in the second set.
The player from El Palmar took the lead in the first set with a break in the third game, while Rublev argued with chair umpire Mohamed Lahyani. When the Russian briefly focused, it was too late, and Alcaraz broke again to make it 6-3. However, the Murcian's serve weakened, he paused his repertoire, and was no longer able to threaten Rublev, who broke at 4-3.
The mood shifted, and with that break, Alcaraz lost the second set, forcing him to raise his level again against a rising opponent. The Russian saved an agonizing fourth game but lost serve in the eighth. However, the five-time Grand Slam champion ended up paying for a tight serve and surrendered it on serve to seal the victory.
Heading into the tiebreak, the Russian heated up again, and a double fault doomed him. Alcaraz waited for his moment and dodged Rublev's high tension to reaffirm his lead in wins in 2025 (52) and maintain his unbeaten streak at Masters 1000s, 15 consecutive victories after titles in Monte Carlo and Rome.
Now, he will face Zverev in the semifinals, who defeated Toronto champion Ben Shelton with relative ease (6-2, 6-2) in just one hour and 17 minutes. All in a match in which the German sought medical assistance at 2-1 in the second set, complaining of breathing difficulties.
Still, Zverev, who won 81% of his first-serve points and saved the only break point he faced, had no trouble securing victory and reaching the semifinals for the fourth time in his last four appearances at the Ohio tournament. The German leads his head-to-head with Alcaraz 6-5 and has won five of their seven hard-court meetings, including their most recent meeting at the ATP Finals in November.
