Bercy’s night session delivered another late twist from Carlos Alcaraz. Across from Taylor Fritz in the Masters quarterfinals, the Spaniard surrendered a marathon opening tie-break, trailed late in set two, erased a pair of match points and finally sealed a three-set win that puts him in this tournament’s semifinals for the first time.
The comeback carried shades of his Roland-Garros final versus Jannik Sinner, when title points also vanished for the opponent. Crowd noise climbed as daring passes started to land; afterward he told the press the contest would rank among the most memorable nights of his career.
Next up is Norway’s Casper Ruud, who earlier dismissed Nuno Borges—the Portuguese lucky loser—in a pair of tight sets. Elsewhere Ben Shelton outlasted compatriot Tommy Paul over three sets and now faces home hope Luca Van Assche.
Those quarterfinal exits knock Fritz and Paul out of the Turin chase. Their vacated Finals berths are lined up for Frances Tiafoe and teenage Spaniard Rafael Jodar, both heading to the mid-November season finale as first-timers. Shelton hailed Tiafoe’s breakthrough as a proud moment for a close friend.
Alcaraz arrived in the last eight with just one prior match under his belt yet still looked ready to fill a blank on his Masters ledger. Saturday’s indoor hard-court date with Ruud flips their usual clay script and offers another stage for the Spaniard to turn late drama into a deeper Paris run.
