Alcaraz, Zverev, and Shelton Secure Semifinal Spots

Alex de Minaur's attempt to reach his 50th tour-level quarterfinal ended in a loss to Carlos Alcaraz at the Barcelona Open. Alcaraz secured the victory with a score of 7-5, 6-3 in a match that lasted 100 minutes.

De Minaur started strongly, breaking Alcaraz's serve early and taking a 3-1 lead. He managed another break after Alcaraz fought back. However, Alcaraz then dominated, winning four of the final five games to claim the first set. The second set saw both players holding serve until Alcaraz secured a crucial break in the sixth game, despite de Minaur having opportunities to win the game.

This win marks Alcaraz's fourth victory against de Minaur, who was aiming for a second consecutive clay court semifinal appearance, having reached the last four at the Monte Carlo Masters. Alcaraz, who won the title in Monaco, has now achieved eight consecutive match wins. Alcaraz admitted he struggled with his serve initially but improved as the match progressed.

In other quarterfinal matches, Arthur Fils advanced after Stefanos Tsitsipas retired early in their match. Holger Rune is set to face Karen Khachanov, with Rune having defeated Casper Ruud and Khachanov overcoming Alejandro Davidovich Fokina.

At the Munich Open, Alexander Zverev, the top seed, recovered from a set down to defeat Tallon Griekspoor and secure a spot in the semi-finals. The match concluded with a score of 6-7 (6-8), 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 after a lengthy three hours and 13 minutes. Zverev expressed his satisfaction with the win, having lost several close matches recently. He will now compete against Fabian Marozsan, who defeated Zizou Bergs. Ben Shelton, the second seed, also advanced to the semi-finals after winning against Luciano Darderi.