Carlos Alcaraz beats Alexander Zverev to reach Madrid Open quarters

Carlos Alcaraz made sure he wouldn't be among the top seeds being upset at the Madrid Open on Tuesday, playing well from the start to secure his spot in the quarterfinals with a 6-1, 6-2 win over Alexander Zverev.

After both second-seeded Daniil Medvedev and fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev lost their fourth-round matches at the clay-court tournament, Alcaraz cruised past 13th-seeded Zverev to stay on track to defend his title at home.

It was a rematch of last year’s Madrid final, which Alcaraz also comfortably won against the former two-time champion in the Spanish capital.

“For me it’s amazing to play the level that I played today,” Alcaraz said. “I feel really good right now and this match gives me a lot of confidence."

Alcaraz didn't concede any break opportunities against Zverev and converted on four of the 10 break chances he had. The 19-year-old Spaniard ended with 21 winners and 12 unforced errors. Zverev had only nine winners and 22 unforced errors.

“This is not a normal result, Zverev is a great player and has great shots, it would be more normal to be a tighter match and I was prepared for it,” the second-ranked Alcaraz said. “I played well. I kept attacking and didn't let him take control, especially on his serve. I played a complete match, that's why the result was like that.”

Alcaraz, coming off the title in Barcelona, has won 18th straight matches in Spain.

Medvedev lost to 121st-ranked qualifier Aslan Karatsev, a fellow Russian, 7-6 (1), 6-4. It was Karatsev's first victory against a top-10 opponent since 2021.

Medvedev complained of the small dimensions of the Arantxa Sanchez Vicario court, saying he should have played on center court as the No. 2 seed.

Karatsev is a former No. 14 in the world and has won three tour titles, the last in Sydney last year. He was a semifinalist at the Australian Open in 2021.

Rublev lost to his doubles partner and also fellow Russian Karen Khachanov 7-6 (8), 6-4. Khachanov saved two set points in the tiebreaker in his first win against a top-10 opponent on clay since 2019.

The 12th-ranked Khachanov believed their tiebreaker was crucial after losing to Rublev in Monte Carlo three weeks ago, when Rublev went on to capture his first Masters 1000 title.

Daniel Altmaier reached the quarterfinals by defeating Jaume Munar 6-3, 6-0.

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