Smiling, Carlos Alcaraz closed the day on Friday in Roland Garros heading to the round of 16, on the same field where a watchman did it hours before Jannik Sinnertwo images that contrast with the Russian’s tears and angry gestures Andrey Rublev (N.6), after being eliminated in the third round.
Semifinalist in 2023, ‘Carlitos’ manages to advance to the second week of the Parisian Grand Slam for the third time in his career, after a 2 hour and 39 minute show against the American Sebastian Korda (N.28) 6-4, 7 -6 (5) and 6-3.
The match left points with several alternatives, an intense second set and a battle worthy of the Philippe Chatrier night session.
Sinner had jumped to that same field hours before to face the Russian Pavel Kotov (N.56), a match resolved in less than two and a half hours by 6-4, 6-4, 6-4.
This is the fourth time that the Italian reaches the second week of the Parisian Grand Slam, which he arrives without having conceded a set. On Friday he saved the only break point he had against and broke down the defense of Kotov, who saved up to 10 of 13 break point chances against him throughout the match.
At noon and in the Suzanne Lenglen, Rublev let a set point escape against Matteo Arnaldi (N.35) during the tie-break of the first set. The Italian did not miss the opportunity to punish the Russian’s mistake and, behind on the scoreboard, the recent winner of the Madrid Masters 1000 began to lose his nerve, until he was eliminated 7-6 (6), 6-2 and 6-4.
Fussing, racket throwing and endless gestures of anger and frustration took Rublev more and more out of the match, while Arnaldi remained solid in his game.
The Italian, in the round of 16, equals his best result in a Grand Slam, after reaching that same stage at the US Open 2023. His rival will be the Greek Stefanos Tsitsipas (N.9), who passed the third round in just an hour and a half of play against the Chinese Zhizhen Zhang (N.44).
Three other third-round matches in the men’s draw that began on Friday had to be postponed to Saturday due to the rain that fell again in Paris. One of them faces the Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassiame (N.21) and the American Ben Shelton (N.15), and will be the one that determines Alcaraz’s rival in the round of 16.
The best in the world does not stop its march
He also performed in the women’s team Iga Swiatek on the day of her 23rd birthday, in the round of 16 after getting rid of the Czech Marie Bouzkova (N.42) 6-4, 6-2. Her rival for a place in the quarterfinals will be the Russian Anastasia Potapova (N.41).
For her part, the Tunisian Ons Jabeur (N.9) eliminated the Canadian Leylah Fernandez 6-4, 7-6 (5) and will face the Danish Clara Tauson (N.72) in the next round.
As rain and overcast skies loom over Paris, the Italian representatives at Roland Garros sing ‘O sole mio’.
The script of the day wanted that in the women’s draw there would also be a duel between an Italian tennis player and a Russian… again with victory for the Mediterranean country. Elisabetta Cocciaretto (N.51) survived the third round after eliminating the Russian Liudmila Samsonova (N.17) 7-6 (4), 6-2.
The Italian will debut in the round of 16 of a Grand Slam against the American Coco Gauff (N.3), a Roland Garros finalist in 2022, who got rid of the Ukrainian Dayana Yastremska (N.32) 6-2, 6-4. .
Source: Ambito
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