Carlos Alcaraz equalled his best run at the Australian Open by beating Tommy Paul in straight sets to reach the quarter-finals.
The world No 1, who is yet to drop a set at Melbourne Park, has made no secret of his desire to claim the title and become the youngest man ever to complete the career Grand Slam of all four major crowns.
Having thrashed Paul in last year’s French Open quarter-finals and beaten him in four sets at Wimbledon in 2024, Alcaraz gave the 19th seed a hard-court humbling with a 7-6 (8-6) 6-4 7-5 win in the afternoon sunshine at Rod Laver Arena.
Alcaraz found himself immediately on the back foot on Rod Laver Arena and he trailed 4-2 in the opening set before fighting back, while a lengthy stoppage for a medical emergency in the crowd at 3-3 in the tie-break was awkward timing for both men.
It was Paul who cracked, double-faulting on Alcaraz’s second set point, and the Spaniard’s extra firepower eventually carried him across the line.
“I think he started pretty strong,” said Alcaraz, who bettered the record held by Bjorn Borg and Boris Becker by reaching a 14th Grand Slam quarter-final before turning 23.
“He came with really strong shots and for me it was difficult a little bit but I stayed there all the time. I knew I was going to have my chances. Overall it’s been a really high level of tennis from both sides. I’m just really happy I got it in straight sets.”
Tale of the Tape: Alcaraz vs Paul
Remodelling the serve
The improved serve that helped carry Alcaraz to a sixth major title at the US Open last summer has remained a work in progress, and the 22-year-old is particularly happy with the reliability of his first delivery.
He averaged 70 per cent first serves and won 79 per cent of those points against Paul, just a touch higher than his mark for the tournament as a whole. The Spaniard also won 68 per cent of points on his second serve.
“I’m surprising myself,” he said. “The serve is something that I’ve been working on since a long time ago. I’m just really happy to see the improvement of the serve.
“After every set, I try to check (the statistics) out. The four matches I’ve played, the serve has been a really important weapon for me.”
The retooled start of his service motion has a familiar look, and hasn’t escaped the attention of Novak Djokovic.
The 24-time major winner joked earlier in the tournament that he has sent Alcaraz a message asking for a copyright fee.
Alcaraz was asked about it in an on-court TV interview, and played along, too.
“Yeah. I heard that. I have the contract over there but I haven’t seen him yet!” the Spaniard said of his exchange with Djokovic.
Now Alcaraz must try to break new ground in Melbourne when he takes on home favourite Alex De Minaur, who dispatched in-form 10th seed Alexander Bublik 6-4 6-1 6-1.
It is the third year in a row he has reached the last eight, with Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic getting the better of him the last two years.
De Minaur is also bidding to reach the last four here for the first time – and indeed at any slam – and the concerning statistic for the home fans is that he has lost all five meetings with Alcaraz.
“I’m going to have to come out guns blazing and I’m excited for a battle against Carlitos,” said the sixth seed.
Murray: De Minaur playing best tennis of his life
Alex de Minaur reached his second straight Australian Open quarter-final and seventh at the Grand Slams overall
Doubles specialist Jamie Murray, speaking on TNT Sports:
“De Minaur steamrolled him in the end. He came through a tight first set, it was a bit cagey in the beginning, which is understandable as he’d lost to Bublik the last two times he’d played him.
“He got up an early break in the second, took the wind out of Bublik’s sails, and Bublik lost belief.
“I thought it would be a really tight match because I knew the level Bublik was playing at. But De Minaur was so solid. He didn’t give up a break point on his serve the whole match.
“De Minaur got himself into a lot of return points, and once rallies got into a neutral situation, De Minaur could make Bublik move around the court and get well on top. His footwork was incredible, as good as anyone.
“De Minaur is playing the best tennis of his life. When he steps out he feels he has a great chance against anybody.
“It was seriously impressive, he talked about it after how well he’s feeling the ball. It’s going to be a great match against Carlos Alcaraz on Tuesday.”
Tien upsets Medvedev again in straight-sets win
Learner Tien obliterated Daniil Medvedev with some extraordinary shot-making to become the youngest man to reach the quarter-finals here since 2015
American Learner Tien overcame a nosebleed in the opening set to school Daniil Medvedev 6-4 6-0 6-3 and move into the quarter-finals of a Grand Slam for the first time in his young career.
Tien upset Medvedev in the second round at Melbourne Park last year in an epic five-setter that lasted nearly five hours but this time he wrapped up the contest in just an hour and 42 minutes on Margaret Court Arena.
Tien took a medical timeout just 10 minutes into the fourth-round encounter as he stuffed tissues up his nose, but that did little to stop his dominance on court as he left Medvedev looking utterly lost on numerous rallies.
Medvedev had said he did not like playing Tien after a trilogy of matches that went the distance last year and the 20-year-old American proved him right with a clinical performance that included 33 winners.
The victory earned Tien a quarter-final match against third seed Alexander Zverev after he crushed Francisco Cerundolo 6-2 6-4 6-4.
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