Alcaraz cruises into China Open quarterfinals. Sabalenka wins on debut as top-ranked woman
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain celebrates after defeating Lorenzo Musetti of Italy in the second round of the men's singles in the China Open tennis tournament at the Diamond Court in Beijing, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. Credit: AP/Andy Wong
BEIJING — Second-ranked Carlos Alcaraz cruised into the quarterfinals of the China Open with a 6-2, 6-2 victory over Lorenzo Musetti in the second round on Sunday.
The top-seeded Spaniard hit 18 winners and broke the Italian’s serve four times in the 81-minute rout as he became the first player to win 60 tour matches this season.
“Today was a perfect match for me,” Alcaraz said. “You can improve and be better every day but I was proud of my tennis playing this level. I played high quality, great shots and a great return game.”
Next up for Alcaraz is seventh-seeded Casper Ruud, who was taken the distance by Tomas Martin Etcheverry 1-6, 7-5, 7-6 (7) in a three-hour thriller.
Sixth-seeded Jannik Sinner had a 6-2, 6-0 win over Yoshihito Nishioka to reach his 12th quarterfinal berth of the season.
The Italian will play Grigor Dimitrov in the quarterfinals. The Bulgarian was imprerssive in his 6-3, 7-5 victory over third-seeded Holger Rune to reach the quarterfinals for the fourth time in eight appearances in Beijing.
“I’m focusing on the level of my tennis. I’ve lost quite a few close matches this year against a few players like that, so I really wanted to step up my game a little bit more,” said Dimitrov of after his 92-minute win.
Carlos Alcaraz of Spain catches the ball as he preparing to serve against Lorenzo Musetti of Italy during the second round of the men's singles in the China Open tennis tournament at the Diamond Court in Beijing, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. Credit: AP/Andy Wong
In her debut match as the world’s top-ranked player, Aryna Sabalenka delivered a dominant 6-1, 6-2 win against Sofia Kenin in the first round of the woman's draw in Beijing.
The Belarussian fired 22 winners to just nine unforced errors against the 31st-ranked Kenin and wrapped up a routine victory in 67 minutes in her first match since the U.S. Open.
“Honestly, I didn’t expect to play that good on my serve,” Sabalenka said. “On practice, it didn’t work that well. But I was super happy that I was able to bring that level on my serve today. I think it’s helped a lot."
Sabalenka, looking for fifth tour title in China and first since the 2019 WTA Elite Trophy, will face Katie Boulter in the second round.
Lorenzo Musetti of Italy reacts during the second round of the men's singles against Carlos Alcaraz of Spain in the China Open tennis tournament at the Diamond Court in Beijing, Sunday, Oct. 1, 2023. Credit: AP/Andy Wong
Anhelina Kalinina upset Wimbeldon champion and eighth-seeded Marketa Vondrousova 1-6, 6-4, 6-1. The Ukrainian will next play Daria Saville, who beat Katerina Siniakova 6-2, 6-2.
Jelena Ostapenko, seeded-13th, rallied from a set down to beat Eva Lys 2-6, 6-3, 6-2, while qualifier Mirra Andreeva stunned tenth-seeded Barbora Krejcikova 6-2, 6-2.
Other first round winners included Liudmila Samsonova, Jennifer Brady, Linda Fruhvirtova and Yulia Putintseva.
