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Editor's note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es.

With a two-day break before facing Novak Djokovic on Friday in the semi-finals at Roland Garros, Carlos Alcaraz practised for 45 minutes with one eye on his clash with the Serbian, but mainly focusing on giving his body some oxygen after beating Stefanos Tsitsipas in the quarter-finals.

In the company of his coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, the World No. 1 completed his training session and then spent almost half an hour signing autographs and taking photos with the fans that had turned out to watch him practise. Earlier, Ferrero spoke about the encounter with Djokovic.

“It’s very good that he’s looking forward to the match,” Ferrero said. “Often you can get nervous and try to put certain situations off because of the difficulties that may be entailed. Looking forward to it is positive. Over these two days he’ll try to relax, recover a bit and get to 100%. As always, he needs to be mentally fresh. Nothing more.”

That was exactly what Alcaraz did on Wednesday; rest, practise and disconnect in the afternoon, taking the opportunity to recover physically and mentally before taking on this huge challenge.

Twelve months ago, Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek fell just short of capturing their maiden major title together when they lost in the Roland Garros final. On Saturday, the Croatian-American tandem will have a shot at redemption.

Competing in the semi-finals on Thursday, the fourth seeds moved past 10th seeds Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos 6-3, 7-6(3) to reach the title match at the clay-court event once again.

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Dodig and Krajicek, who squandered three championship points last year, saved three second-set set points against Granollers and Zeballos, coming through the tie-break to earn victory after one hour and 54 minutes.

Dodig and Krajicek have won tour-level titles in Rotterdam and Monte-Carlo this season. They will try to add to that tally when they meet Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen in the final.

Teaming for the first time at Roland Garros, Miyu Kato and Tim Puetz completed their dream run in style on Thursday when they captured the mixed doubles title.

In a tight final, the Japanese-German team clawed past Bianca Andreescu and Michael Venus 4-6, 6-4, 10-6 to claim the crown at the clay-court major after one hour and 35 minutes.

"Miyu, it is unbelievable what has happened in the past 10 days," Puetz said during the trophy ceremony. "I hope this helps you. I am very, very happy to win."

Kato and Puetz held their nerve in the key moments on Court Philippe-Chatrier, saving four break points in the second set before they were the more consistent team in the Match Tie-break to triumph.

"I am so glad I have you as a partner," Kato said to Puetz during the ceremony. "Thank you so much for always supporting me and cheering me up."

Daniil Medvedev, Andy Murray and Nick Kyrgios are among the ATP stars who will compete at the ATP 500 in Washington, D.C, from 31 July - 6 August.

Medvedev will make his fourth appearance, with his best result a run to the final in 2019, while Murray reached the title match on debut in 2006. Australian Kyrgios is the defending champion, having also triumphed at the hard-court event in 2019.

Americans Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe will carry home hopes in Washington, D.C. Both have won tour-level titles in the United States this year, with Fritz triumphing in Delray Beach and Tiafoe in Houston.

The 2016 champion Gael Monfils, four-time tour-level champion Felix Auger-Aliassime and 2017 Nitto ATP Finals champion Grigor Dimitrov will also be in action.

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The potential matchup everyone had circled from the start of Roland Garros is now a reality. One year after a three-set epic in their first meeting in Madrid, Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will contest their second ATP Head2Head showdown in the Paris semi-finals.

The two stars have waged a neck-and-neck battle in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings this season, trading the top spot four times in 2023. Now this generational battle will play out on Court Philippe-Chatrier, with World No. 1 Alcaraz knowing a Friday victory would ensure he remains at the pinnacle of the men's game following the tournament.

The 20-year-old Spaniard is seeking his first Roland Garros final and his second major title, which would make it two trophies in as many Grand Slam appearances for the reigning US Open champion, who missed the Australian Open with a leg injury.

Djokovic, 36, is bidding for a record-breaking 23rd Grand Slam men's singles crown — an achievement that would also see him return to World No. 1. The Serbian is also attempting to advance to his seventh final in his past eight majors as he chases a sixth title in that stretch.

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Both Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev stood on the brink of glory last year at Roland Garros before their campaigns came to sudden ends against Rafael Nadal. Ruud was swept aside by the Spaniard in a straight-sets final after Zverev suffered a gruesome ankle injury deep into the second set of what was already an epic semi-final against the eventual champ.

This season, both Ruud and Zverev muddled through largely middling results before peaking in Paris. Ruud's best result is a title at the ATP 250 in Estoril, but he had notched consecutive wins at just one other event prior to Roland Garros, reaching the Rome semis. Zverev entered the major with a 16-14 record on the year, his best results coming in semi-final runs in Dubai and Geneva.

"I think it's great to see Sascha back," Ruud said. "I think both for him and me, this is our biggest result this year, reaching the semi-final. I think we will try to play with shoulders down and just try to enjoy it.

"It's been a tough year for Sascha, and he has fought his way back, and he is back in the semi-final here. The beginning of this year for me has not been great, so it's great to get a good result here for me."

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Since Zverev made his return from injury to the ATP Tour in January, he has had this event circled.

My name is Ernesto Escobedo and I have a stutter.

It has taken me a long, long time to be comfortable enough to share that with the world. It is something I have lived with as long as I can remember. But as a kid, I never really paid attention to it. All I was worried about was playing tennis, going out with friends and having fun.

The truth is there are times when it feels like something is stuck in my throat and I just can't talk. If I force myself to speak, it comes out poorly and I stutter really badly. It’s tough.

I know a lot of people have a lot of issues they deal with. No one is perfect in this world. But one of the most important things in life is communication. It just sucks that you could see my insecurity off the bat because of my struggles with speech.

If somebody has four toes, that person could hide it forever. I can't hide. I'm an easy target because I can't speak like everybody else. I'm trying my best to work on it and I thought a good way to start would be to share my story.

Holger Rune made a spirited comeback bid on Wednesday night against Casper Ruud, but ultimately found a two-set hole too much to dig out of after a sluggish start in the Roland Garros quarter-finals. While the Dane was quick to credit his opponent after the 1-6, 2-6, 6-3, 3-6 defeat, Rune ultimately put the blame for the result squarely on his own shoulders.

"I think I started very, very bad, unfortunately," he reflected. "I didn't find my level at all the first two sets. Then I started to play a little bit better, found some rhythm in my game, managed to put him under pressure.

"But, again, it's too costly to start so late. Against a great player like him, he deserved to win because, first of all, I wasn't there the first two sets. But you cannot allow yourself to do that when you play a player like Casper, and any player at the top of the game, because it's too long of a way back. Credit to him for staying there."

"He deserved to win" ?

A glimpse into Holger Rune's press conference.#RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/vzECcoNk3I

After making 30 unforced errors in the first two sets, Rune began to fire off his forehand wing to take set three. But it was too little, too late, as Ruud closed out the win in a competitive fourth set.

Andy Murray overcame a tough test Wednesday against China’s Yunchaokete Bu to advance to the quarter-finals at the ATP Challenger Tour 125 event in Surbiton.

The three-time major champion Murray raised his level in key moments to oust the Chinese #NextGenATP star Yunchaokete 7-6(1), 6-4 after two hours, 14 minutes. The 36-year-old fired 16 aces and fought off the 21-year-old’s aggressive style of play to advance at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy, where he reached the semi-finals in 2022.

After the match, Murray spoke on the importance of navigating through difficult moments during the first week of grass-court play this year.

“A physical match, quite a lot of long points,” Murray said in his post-match interview. “I was up 4-2, 40/0 serving [in the first set], and then I had set points at 5-4, set point at 6-5 as well. It’s good to play tie-breaks and go through tight matches on a different surface.”

The World No. 173 Yunchaokete, who stated Tuesday that he idolised Murray as a child, showed flashes of his best level against the second seed. When Murray held a 4-2, 40/0 lead in the first set, Yunchaokete won nine consecutive points to even the match at 4-4. Murray converted his fifth set point to gain an advantage on the Xinjiang native.

For the second straight year in the Roland Garros quarter-finals, Casper Ruud edged fellow Scandinavian Holger Rune in four entertaining sets on Court Philippe-Chatrier. On Wednesday evening, the fourth-seeded Norwegian earned a 6-1, 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 victory against the Dane to continue his bid for a second consecutive final at the clay-court major.

Ruud improved to 5-1 in the pair's ATP Head2Head, avenging a Rome semi-final defeat from last month. All six of their meetings have come on clay. By winning the matchup of two of the most successful clay-court players this season, Ruud picked up his 16th win on the surface in 2023 (16-5), drawing him level on wins with Rune (16-4).

The victory moved Ruud above Rune to No. 5 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings; he could rise past Stefanos Tsitsipas and maintain his status as World No. 4 by reaching his third Grand Slam final, but cannot move any higher even with his first major title. The 24-year-old will meet Alexander Zverev in Friday's semis, after the German beat Tomas Martin Etcheverry in four sets earlier on Wednesday.

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Ruud dominated the opening two sets of the quarter-final as his 20-year-old opponent seemed to show the effects of his five-set victory against Francisco Cerundolo in the fourth round. The Norwegian's dominance in the rallies left Rune struggling to find a response, with the Dane misfiring by big margins from the baseline and unsuccessfully taking risks to shorten points.

Nick Kyrgios received a surprise taker when he asked on Twitter Tuesday whether anyone would be interested in his coaching. Actor Ben Stiller volunteered.

“I’m open to it. But would need to know you’re serious,” Stiller wrote.

“Let’s do it. I’m all in, what you thinking?” Kyrgios replied.

“First we need to decide who is coaching who,” Stiller said.

“I’ll coach you to get you in a professional tournament. Then you coach me to get me in a movie,” Kyrgios answered.

Alexander Zverev is keen for more after reaching his third consecutive Roland Garros semi-final on Wednesday.

“I’m in the semi-final of a Grand Slam. I'm happy to be in a sem-final of a Grand Slam any time that I'm there,” Zverev said. “But, of course, for me the tournament is not over. I'm happy to be here, but I know that hopefully I have two more matches ahead, and they're not going to get easier.”

The German is into the last four at a major for the sixth time (1-4) and will try to reach his second major final. The two-time Nitto ATP Finals champion is not content with only advancing this far.

“It was definitely a tournament that I marked on my calendar this year. I'm happy to be playing the way I'm playing here in Paris. I'm extremely happy with how things are going,” Zverev said. “But as I said, the tournament is not over yet. There are still potentially two very, very difficult matches ahead, and I'm looking forward to that.”

Zverev marked Roland Garros on his calendar because in last year’s semi-finals against Rafael Nadal, he tore three ligaments in his right ankle and did not compete again for the rest of the season.

Alexander Zverev didn’t have things all his own way on Wednesday, but he stepped up when needed to reach the semi-finals at Roland Garros for the third consecutive season.

In a heavy-hitting baseline battle against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Zverev overcame an attacking bombardment from the Argentine to triumph 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

With his three-hour, 22-minute win, the German improved to 28-7 at the clay-court major, while he climbed four spots to No. 23 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. Zverev will continue the quest for his maiden major title when he meets Casper Ruud or Holger Rune on Friday.

Etcheverry, who advanced to finals on clay in Santiago and Houston earlier this year, was competing in his first major quarter-final. The 23-year-old did not drop a set en route to the last eight and played with aggression against Zverev, unleashing on the forehand to trouble the German.

After the first two sets were split, Zverev began to find his rhythm. From 0-2 down in the third set, the German reeled off five straight games to take control. He struck 12 winners in the set and moved forward effectively to win 86 per cent (12/14) of net points. Zverev then was then consistent in the fourth, limiting errors off his backhand wing and saving all four break points he faced to earn his 21st win of the season and 13th on clay.

Editor's note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es.

The only negative Tomas Martin Etcheverry might find in the fact that he is still in the competition at Roland Garros is having to deprive himself of a large number of treats that his diet as an elite athlete prohibits him from eating. Ice cream, pizza and pancakes are some of the foods the 23-year-old Argentine only allows himself to have occasionally once he has been knocked out of a tournament.

But avoiding his guilty eating pleasures and sticking to the diet put forward by nutritionist Luciano Spena has been fruitful for the Argentine. Before making his bow in the quarter-finals of a major on Wednesday against Alexander Zverev at Roland Garros, Etcheverry spoke to ATPTour.com about the importance of food in his career. He also touched upon his potential as a chef and his favourite dish when he’s not competing (his grandmother’s milanesa).

If you invited friends for dinner at your house, what would you cook and why?
An asado. We’re pretty good with barbeques in my country. When I’m with friends I light the barbeque, we drink mate... You need a decent amount of time so that the meat is properly cooked, and I like that because I can relax, chat and rest.

How would you rate your cooking skills from 1 to 10?
I don’t know. I’m not bad. I’m best on the barbeque. I would like to learn to cook more. During the pandemic I tried to learn new things. I like cooking. With my girlfriend I took a lot of classes for tacos, sauces for pastas, and things like that. I still want to learn to make risotto and to season better. That’s the key to good flavour.

Like anyone who's watched Carlos Alcaraz storm through three seeded opponents to reach the Roland Garros semi-finals, Brad Gilbert has been impressed by the 20-year-old's dominance in Paris. 

But for the former World No. 4 — who has coached the likes of Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray — it is something other than Alcaraz's seemingly limitless power that has stood out.

"He's played with more guile. He's played with more variety than he did last year," Gilbert assessed. "He's not trying to go through you. He can go through you, but he's playing with a lot more shape and a lot more spin."

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After straight-sets wins against 26th seed Denis Shapovalov, 17th seed Lorenzo Musetti and fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alcaraz now faces his toughest test yet in Novak Djokovic.

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos continued to march through the Roland Garros doubles draw with an upset of top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski on Tuesday in Paris.

The 10th seeds have not dropped a set in the tournament, and they carried their strong form into the quarter-finals with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win against Koolhof/Skupski on Court Simonne-Mathieu. The Spanish-Argentine duo saved the only break point they faced and won 85 per cent of their first-serve points in the victory while converting on one of their two break chances.

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Granollers/Zeballos had not lost more than three games in a set this fortnight until they were pushed to a tie-break by the top seeds, but a strong finish ensured their perfect set record remained intact.

They will next meet fourth seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in Thursday's semi-finals, after the fourth seeds moved past 11th-seeded Germans Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4. Dodig/Krajicek, who notched three of their four Roland Garros wins in a deciding set, secured the win despite converting on just one of nine break points on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

A spot in the main draw at Wimbledon is hard-earned, and this year will be no exception.

The entry list for qualifying at the upcoming grass-court major in London has been announced and includes a number of high-profile names. #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils, the big-hitting Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis and former Top 10 stars David Goffin and Lucas Pouille are among those set to compete at the Community Sport Centre Roehampton from 26-29 June.

Wimbledon debutant Fils is the highest-ranked player on the list. The 18-year-old Frenchman is at a career-high No. 63 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after lifting his maiden tour-level trophy in Lyon last month. His more experienced countryman Pouille will also hope to build on some promising recent performances. The 29-year-old reached the second round at Roland Garros as a qualifier and has pedigree on the lawns of SW19, where he reached the quarter-finals in 2016.

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The World No. 108 Kokkinakis won his first main draw match at Wimbledon in 2022 and will look to deploy his free-hitting game to good effect as he chases his seventh consecutive main draw appearance at major tournaments. Goffin competes in Wimbledon qualifying for the first time since 2011: The Belgian has reached the quarter-finals at the Championships in each of the past two years, and holds a 16-8 record at the event.

A dream year keeps getting better for Chinese #NextGenATP star Yunchaokete Bu.

The 21-year-old, who claimed his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in April, earned his first grass-court victory Tuesday at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy. Yunchaokete ousted Briton Harry Wendelken to set a second-round clash against his idol, three-time major champion Andy Murray.

“He’s my idol. When I was nine or 10, I started to love him,” Yunchaokete told ATPTour.com. “The dream has come. I don’t know how to describe this feeling, it’s pretty special.”

Yunchaokete recalled one Murray match in particular that he will forever remember.

“I think the [2012 London] Olympics match against Roger, that was a big one,” Yunchaokete said. “Because a month before, he just lost the Wimbledon final against him.”

Carlos Alcaraz has owned his ATP Head2Head against Stefanos Tsitsipas, but this was another level of domination.

The Spaniard was largely untouchable in a 6-2, 6-1, 7-6(5) victory on Tuesday night at Roland Garros, setting up a semi-final showdown against Novak Djokovic on Friday. He faced break points in just one game, as Tsitsipas broke late in the final set to stay alive, and ultimately sealed the victory on his sixth match point after two hours, 12 minutes.

"I believe in myself all the time. I would say that's the most important thing — not only for me, I would say for everyone, believing in yourself," Alcaraz said on-court when asked how he produced such a strong performance. "I always think that I'm going to play these kind of matches in this level. I would say that's the key of everything... with a joy. That's the key."

If Alcaraz defeats Djokovic to reach his second major final, he will retain the No. 1 Pepperstone ATP Ranking following the tournament. Should Djokovic win, he could reclaim the top spot by winning his third Roland Garros title.

With Tuesday's victory, Alcaraz advanced to his first semi-final at the clay-court major, having already become the youngest man to reach consecutive Roland Garros quarter-finals since Djokovic in 2006-07. The 20-year-old improved to 35-3 this season and 5-0 overall against Tsitsipas.

The tantalising Roland Garros semi-final showdown between Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic will have more than a place in the final on the line. The match could decide who leaves Paris as World No. 1 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings.

If Alcaraz defeats Djokovic, he will guarantee his standing as World No. 1 on 12 June. If Djokovic wins, he will be one win from a record-setting 23rd major title and a return to World No. 1 next Monday.

A lot can swing on the result of the semi-final blockbuster. Alcaraz can block Djokovic’s path to reclaiming No. 1 and also take a commanding lead himself.

Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings (as of 6 June)

No player on the other half of the draw has an opportunity to ascend to World No. 1, but Holger Rune and Casper Ruud, who are No. 5 and No. 6 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, respectively, have a chance to move up. The quarter-final opponents both can climb as high as World No. 4 by the end of the tournament.