In the third and final set of his Cincinnati Open quarterfinal match against Andrey Rublev on Friday afternoon, Carlos Alcaraz committed 15 unforced errors and authored three double faults.
And, yet, the second-seeded Spaniard found a way to claim a 6-3, 4-6, 7-5 victory over the ninth-seeded Russian in Mason, Ohio.
“I maintained positive thoughts all the time, even though I lost focus a few times during the second set,” Alcaraz said. “Playing someone like Andrey, when you lose focus on two or three points, it (can) cost you the set or almost the match. I just stayed strong mentally and that’s what I’m most proud of.”
Alcaraz squandered a 5-3 lead in the third set, but then he held his serve and then broke Rublev for the fourth time to set up Saturday’s semifinal against No. 3 Alexander Zverev of Germany.
Alcarez prevailed, in part, because Rublev made even more miscues in the third set. He racked up five double faults and 17 unforced errors in the third after committing just three double faults and 17 unforced errors in the first two sets combined. That included a double fault on match point that had Alcaraz pumping his fist over his 15th straight victory in an ATP Masters 1000 event.
“It’s just (about) accepting the moment, accepting that I am playing a third set, accepting that it’s going to be a really tough battle, and I love that,” Alcaraz said. “It was extreme conditions, but I just love playing in front of this energy. I am just really happy to live these kinds of experiences, so I just remind myself of that in these moments.”
Zverev maintained his dominance of Shelton, moving to 4-0 against the fast-rising American since their first meeting in Cincinnati last summer with a surprisingly routine 6-2, 6-2 triumph.
Shelton seemed to be in control early, leading 40-0 in the third game of the first set. But Zverev took advantage of four consecutive errors, and when a Shelton volley went wide, he had the break he needed.
Zverev would earn another break in the fifth game and cruise to the first-set victory. The same pattern repeated itself in the second set, as Shelton was broken in games 3 and 5 and watched his nine-match winning streak come to a screeching halt in only 1 hour, 17 minutes.
Zverev only made 13 unforced errors in the match and won 15 of Shelton’s 19 second-serve points.
Zverev’s biggest concern of the night was his own health. He called for the doctor at 2-1 in the second set as he appeared to be struggling with this breathing.
“Right now I’m not feeling too great… I’m not sure what happened,” the 2021 Cincinnati champion said. “I came out today and probably felt the best I’ve felt in a few months. Was feeling the ball incredibly well from both sides. In the first set I started feeling not so great and it got progressively worse. But I’m in the semi-finals and I’ll do everything I can (to) be 100 percent tomorrow.”
Zverev leads Alcaraz, 6-5, in the all-time series and they have split outdoor, hard-court matches, 2-2. The two have not faced off since November 2024.
–Field Level Media
