World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz, candidate for the trophy despite a troubled clay court season, overcame American Sebastian Korda (28th) 6-4 7-6 (7/5) 6-3 to qualify for the 8th.
Under the roof of the Central Court, rain obliged, Alcaraz, right arm still encased in a protective sleeve, won in a little over two and a half hours. For a place in the quarter-finals, the double Grand Slam winner and former world No. 1 will face either the American Ben Shelton or the Canadian Félix Auger-Aliassime, who will finish their face-to-face match that began on Friday on Saturday.
Between two enterprising players, the first two sets were contested. But if Korda made up for a break each time (2-0 to 2-2 in the first, 3-1 to 3-3 in the second), he was generally penalized by his too many unforced errors and allowed Alcaraz to make the difference in ‘money time’. At 4 all in the first round, in the deciding game in the second.
In the third set, the protégé of Juan Carlos Ferrero again widened the gap early. Definitely this time.
Absent because of his painful forearm in Monte-Carlo and Barcelona, then in Rome after an elimination in the quarter-finals in Madrid, Alcaraz arrived in Paris with only three victories obtained during the European tour on ocher.
He has just doubled this total in barely a week spent on Parisian clay.
/ATS
