Alcaraz spoils Chinese party, defeats Wu in Shanghai

Carlos Alcaraz was forced to battle hard on Sunday as he earned his eleventh consecutive win to advance to the Rolex Shanghai Masters fourth round.

The World No. 2 showed glimpses of his most scintillating tennis as he soared to a 7-6(5), 6-3 win over wild card Wu Yibing, his 50th tour-level win of the year. Having clinched his fourth title of the season at the China Open earlier this week, Alcaraz remains unbeaten since his shock second-round exit at the US Open and has now claimed 100 hard-court wins.

“He is recovering his level. He’s coming back from injury, but his level deserves to be at the top for sure,” Alcaraz said of Wu. “If he keeps playing at this level, I’m pretty sure I’m going to see him around more often. I’m just really happy to get through.

“I don’t want to say I was surprised, but it was the first time I was playing against him. He just beat [Nicolas] Jarry really easily, 6-2, 6-2, so that’s impressive. I had to be focused on playing my best. I’m not used to feeling the feelings I had on the court. He is a really powerful player, plays really strong, so I felt like I was not dominating the game.”

He's DONE IT 🔥@carlosalcaraz takes out Yibing Wu 7-6 6-3 to advance in Shanghai!@SH_RolexMasters | #RolexShanghaiMasters pic.twitter.com/S3Old8385b

Chinese men’s tennis has undergone an eye-catching rise during the Asian swing, but Alcaraz is proving to spoil the party after he defeated #NextGenATP star Shang Juncheng in his Shanghai opener.

Leading 3/1 in the tie-break, Wu appeared to be in a strong position to clinch the opening set but Alcaraz held his nerve to storm into the lead. The Spaniard, who found himself in a similar position on Wednesday in the deciding set of the Beijing final against Jannik Sinner, was again able to reproduce a thrilling tie-break comeback.

For large parts of the opening set, Wu ignited some of the tennis that helped him become China’s first ATP Tour champion in Dallas in 2023. Although he lost the tie-break, he continued to push Alcaraz in the second set.

The 24-year-old dug deep and made Alcaraz work for his service games but a slight lapse in concentration in the sixth game handed the Spaniard an ultimately decisive break. From there, Alcaraz kept his foot on the gas and crossed the finish line with conviction, finishing with 23 winners in his victory, according to Infosys ATP Stats.

Alcaraz is set to face either Gael Monfils or Tokyo finalist Ugo Humbert for a spot in the last eight in Shanghai.

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