“I feel comfortable here in Beijing. The conditions suit my game well”explained the Spaniard after this qualification for the quarter-finals. “I had a very solid performance today and I hope to be able to raise my level of play even more in the next match.”
Alcaraz, 3rd in the world, won his 200th victory on the ATP circuit and still has not shown the slightest sign of fatigue after his Davis Cup – Laver Cup sequence. “This 200th victory is a great success for me. I always try to win every match I play and I intend to continue like that”he told the press. Only John McEnroe reached the 200 victory mark faster than Alcaraz in the history of the game. This second place in the record books was previously held by Rafael Nadal.
He will now battle it out with Karen Khachanov, seeded n°7, for a place in the last four. “He is not an easy player to negotiate”estimated Alcaraz who has never lost a set in three confrontations against Khachanov. “It doesn’t matter that I’ve already won three times, I’m going to have to be very focused to stop him from playing his game. I’m going to have to seize every opportunity and not be afraid of making a mistake. It will undoubtedly be a very interesting match.”
The 21-year-old Spaniard eliminated Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard (6-4, 6-4) during the previous round. Griekspoor, ranked 39th in the world, won against Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic (6-7 [3]6-4, 6-3).
The other posters of the second round in Beijing (ATP 500, Olympic Green Tennis Center, hard, 3,720,165 USD, results displayed from newest to oldest):
- Andrey Rublev – Alejandro Davidovich Fokina : scheduled Monday
- Karen Khachanov – Francisco Cerundolo : 7-6 [4]7-6 [9]
- Yunchaokete Bu (WC) – Lorenzo Musetti (N.6) : 6-2, 6-4
- Daniil Medvedev (N.3) – Adrian Mannarino : 7-6 [6]6-2
- Jannik Sinner (N.1) – Roman Safiullin (LL) : 3-6, 6-2, 6-3
- Jiri Lehecka – Roberto Bautista Agut (Q): 3-6, 6-2, 6-1
- Flavio Cobolli – Pavel Kotov (Q): 6-4, 6-2
