DANIIL MEDVEDEV VS. FABIAN MAROZSAN | AO 2026

 

CARLOS ALCARAZ SHOCKS ROLLAND GARROS CROWD WITH MAGIC SHOT

© Via Instagram Roland Garros - Fair Use

Carlos Alcaraz has qualified for the third round of the 2025 Roland Garros, although he lost the first set of his tournament to Fabian Marozsan. The former world No. 1 suffered a drop in the second set and allowed the dangerous Hungarian player to get back into the match, but he dominated the other three sets proving that he has a very high level on this surface when he is fully focused.

The young Spanish ace will do everything possible to win his second French Open in a row, after last year's amazing run that had given him a lot of confidence also for the Wimbledon Championships.

Carlitos has a lot of pressure on him in this edition because he is considered by everyone as the top favorite, especially after winning the Masters 1000 in Monte Carlo and Rome in the weeks leading up to the second Major of the season.

Alcaraz's amazing shot

The 4-time Grand Slam champion is aware that he must avoid wasting energy in the first week of the tournament and is also working on this aspect together with all the members of his team. The 22-year-old from Murcia is able to express truly impressive tennis on this surface and he has already shown it during the final of the Rome Masters 1000, in which he defeated his top rival Jannik Sinner in straight sets to win the seventh Masters 1000 of his career.

During the match against Marozsan today, the current world No.2 delighted the crowd with an incredible shot that is set to be among the best of the entire year. In this circumstance, the Spanish star once again showed all his exceptional athleticism and his ability to reach areas of the court impossible for almost any other player.

Alcaraz's run in Paris has just begun, but there are already all the conditions to witness a memorable show. Opponents will have to find new solutions to prevent him from triumphing again in the French capital.

- Simone Brugnoli

ALCARAZ, SWIATEK ADVANCE AT INDIAN WELLS

USA TODAY Sports 

 Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz moved into the fourth round at Indian Wells on Sunday with a 6-2 6-3 win over Felix Auger-Aliassime.

Third seed Jannik Sinner also advanced with a 6-3 6-4 win over Jan-Lennard Struff while 11th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas beat home hope Frances Tiafoe 6-3 6-3.

In the women's draw, world number one Iga Swiatek powered past Czech Linda Noskova 6-4 6-0.

Spaniard Alcaraz, who next plays Fabian Marozsan, said one of the keys to defending his title was to put the previous year's victory out of his mind.

"I think the first thing that you have to do if you want to defend the title is you forget about you won the title last year," said the 20-year-old.

"It's about being yourself, being at 100% every day if you want to do a good results here".

Alcaraz also said the ankle injury which forced him to withdraw from the Rio Open last month was not an issue during his matches.

"I'm not going to say I forget about it, but in matches, I forget all about it," he added. "I'm moving very well. I don't think about the ankle in matches, in training. But off the court, of course, I have to take care of it."

- Reuters 

ATP ROUNDUP: KAREN KHACHANOV ADVANCES IN DOHA

Karen Khachanov. Reuters 

 Second-seeded Karen Khachanov recorded a 6-4, 7-5 win over Fabian Marozsan on Wednesday in the second round of the Qatar ExxonMobil Open in Doha.

Khachanov, of Russia, fired six aces and benefited from three double faults by his opponent to dispatch the Italian in 88 minutes.

Top-seeded Andrey Rublev of Russia cruised past France's Richard Gasquet 6-3, 6-4.

The third seed, Ugo Humbert of France, also sailed through to the quarterfinal round with a 6-4, 6-1 win over Pavel Kotov of Russia.

Fourth-seeded Alexander Bublik had a tougher time in his match against Marton Fucsovics of Hungary. The Kazakhstan native overcame six double faults and rebounded from a first-set misstep in his 2-6, 6-3, 6-4 win.

Also Wednesday, Alexei Popyrin of Australia notched a 7-6 (3), 7-6 (8), 6-1 victory over Frenchman Hugo Grenier, and Finland's Emil Ruusuvuori posted a 6-3, 6-3 win over Christopher O'Connell of Australia.

Former World No. 1 Andy Murray of Great Britain fell in a tough three-set match to Czech 18-year-old Jakub Mensik, who ousted No. 5 seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain in the first round. Mensik needed three hours, 26 minutes to beat Murray 7-6 (6), 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4).

France's Gael Monfils eked out a 4-6, 7-5, 7-6 (2) victory over China's Zhang Zhizhen.