Alcaraz speeds into Roland-Garros semi-finals

He also kept his perfect head-to-head record with Tsitsipas intact with the win, improving to 6-0 all-time against the Greek. Since a five-set thriller between the two at the 2021 US Open, Alcaraz has lost just one set all-time in the match-up.

Story of the match

Twelve months ago, Alcaraz raced through his quarter-final match with Tsitsipas at Roland-Garros, 6-2, 6-1, 7-6(5), in a match that lasted two hours and 12 minutes. While the scoreboard looked tighter in the reprise, the pace of play was equally as furious and, largely, it was again all in favour of the Spaniard.

The two-time major champion broke serve to start the match and never trailed in the first two sets. He surrendered just four points on his serve in the opener and accumulated a 6-3, 4-1 lead for himself in just about an hour of play.

For a brief moment, Tsitsipas found a spark and levelled the set by winning three straight games. He brought up his first break point of the match in the seventh game of the second set with a forehand winner and converted when Alacaraz missed a first ball forehand. Another crucial miss off that wing denied Alcaraz a break point in the next game.

But any hopes that Tsitsipas had for evening the match deteriorated in the ensuing tie-break, as three errors – and two winners from Alcaraz – gave the 21-year-old a 5-1 cushion that was never under threat. In just an hour and a half on court the two-time Grand Slam champion had pocketed two sets.

Neither man faced a break point in the third set until the seventh game, when a 30-0 lead for Tsitsipas evaporated thanks to two errors and two double faults. The only window he had to come back in the match came in the final game when Alcaraz missed two forehands to trail 0-30, but three missed returns – and a final forehand winner – put the Spaniard safely through to a semi-final showdown with Sinner.

Key stats

Alcaraz was the leader in all measures of on-court performance, from the first serves he made (73 per cent) and the points he won behind them (74 per cent), to the break points he converted (four from six). He also defended his second serve well when needed, also winning nearly three-quarters of those points. 

Though he racked up just one more winner than Tsitsipas (27 to 26), he hit far fewer unforced errors (21 to 33) on his groundstrokes, and responded well to the concerted effort Tsitsipas made to change his patterns and come forward. On more than a few occasions, the charging Tsitsipas couldn’t handle a passing shot rifled at his feet – though the Greek won 34 of the 46 points in total when he came to the net.

Alcaraz's take on the match

On his performance: “I think it was a really good match. I played great. I think there weren’t up and downs in my game. I controlled very well my emotions, myself on the court.

"I was really calm in the moments I had to be and I’m really happy with the way that I managed everything, the way that I played and to play a semifinal here again in Roland-Garros.”

On his semi-final against Sinner: “It’s a really difficult challenge. Right now, he’s the best player in the world, or the player who is playing the best tennis right now. What can I say about him? We’ve played great matches … high level, and I’m glad to have him in the tour at this level.

"Thanks to him, I push myself to be better, to be a better player, to give my 100 per cent every day, to wake up in the morning and want to improve my game to try to beat him.

"I love watching him play, as well. I’m ready to take that challenge. It is the match that everybody wants to watch, and I’m sure he’s going to show his best tennis – myself, as well, and we’re going to see who’s going to win.”