The “new emperor” of men’s tennis, Carlos Alcaraz (#1-Spain), has reached the quarterfinals of the last major tournament of the year, the US Open ($65 million – approx. KRW 857 billion).
Alcaraz defeated Matteo Arnaldi (61st-ranked Italy) 3-0 (6-3 6-3 6-4) in the men’s singles round of 16 on the eighth day of the tournament in New York City on Thursday.메이저놀이터
Alcaraz, who won the US Open last year and Wimbledon this year, is three wins away from his third career title and second straight US Open title.
The 20-year-old, born in 2003, became only the second player since 1968, when professional players were allowed to play in majors, to reach the US Open quarterfinals three times before turning 21.
Only Andy Agassi (5 times – retired – USA) reached more quarterfinals than Alcaraz before turning 21.
Alcaraz’s quarterfinal opponent is Alexander Tsverev (No. 12-Germany), who upset Jannik Cinnere (No. 6-Italy) 3-2 (6-4 3-6 6-2 4-6 6-3) in a four-hour, 41-minute match.
Alcaraz is now 2-3 against Tsverev.
The only other time they met at a major, in the quarterfinals of last year’s French Open, Tsverev won 3-1.
However, in their most recent meeting, at the Madrid Open in May, Alcaraz won 2-0.
With Alcaraz in the quarterfinals, a “new emperor vs. old emperor” matchup between him and No. 2 Novak Djokovic (Serbia) in the final is even more likely.
Djokovic will take on Taylor Fritz (9th-ranked USA) the following day to advance to the semifinals.
Andrei Rublev (No. 8-Russia) defeated Jack Draper (No. 123-Britain) 3-1 (6-3 3-6 6-3 6-4) to reach the men’s singles quarterfinals.
Rublev’s next opponent will be 2021 champion Danil Medvedev (#3-Russia).
Medvedev defeated Alex Diminore (No. 13 AUS) 3-1 (2-6 6-4 6-1 6-2) in the round of 16 earlier in the day.
Medvedev leads the all-time head-to-head series against Rublev 5-2.
In the women’s singles, defending Wimbledon champion Marketa Bondrowsova (No. 9-Czech Republic) advanced to the quarterfinals with a 2-1 (6-7<3-7> 6-3 6-3) victory over Peyton Stearns (No. 59-USA) on her home court.
Next up for Bondrowsova, who will be looking to win her second career major title, is Madison Keys (No. 17-USA), who advanced with a 2-0 (6-1 6-3) win over No. 3 Jessica Pegula (USA) earlier in the day.
This will be the first meeting between Bondrowsova and Keys.
Zheng Chin-wen (No. 23, China) continued her “breakout” season with a 2-0 (6-2 6-4) win over last year’s tournament runner-up, Ons Jaber (No. 5, Tunisia).
This is the first time the 20-year-old has reached the quarterfinals of a major.
Her previous best result was reaching the round of 16 at last year’s French Open, her first major tournament.
Chung will face No. 2 Arina Sabalenka (Belarus) in the semifinals after coming back from a 2-0 (6-1 6-3) defeat of No. 14 Darya Kasatkina (Russia).
With world number one Iga Cibionte (Poland) out in the round of 16, Savalenka is the favorite to win the tournament.
However, Chung is confident, saying, “If I stay true to my tennis, I believe I can win against any player.”
A win in the quarterfinals would equal the highest semifinal finish by a Chinese player in US Open history, which Li Na and Feng Shui (now retired) achieved at the event in 2013 and 2014, respectively.