Dimitrov Rallies Past Alcaraz At Shanghai Masters, Rublev Wins; Shelton v Korda QF

Grigor Dimitrov put an end to Carlos Alcaraz‘s Shanghai title hopes knocking out the Spanish star from a set down 5-7, 6-2, 6-4.

Dimitrov, who was 0-3 against the 20-year-old coming, played near-flawless tennis at the end as Alcaraz and his trusty forehand gave in to the Bulgarian.

The 32-year-old Dimitrov finished with 10 aces and was 4-of-5 on break chances. He lost only six points on serve in the final set and never faced a break point.

“I stayed in the match, that was the first thing, especially after the first set,” Dimitrov said to the ATP. “I was serving very well throughout the first set and he made a few errors. I pushed him to make a lot of errors at certain moments. At 4-5 he played an amazing game and another at 6-5. I was creating a lot of opportunities.

“After the second break in the second set I think I understood his service games and was able to put more balls in and read his serve a bit better. I think in the third set it was a bit of cat-and-mouse. I think we both played a solid set. He made a few errors and I was very solid and served well when I had to.”

Alcaraz is now winless in his last five events since his Wimbledon title in July. Dimitrov is just the second player with a one-handed backhand to beat Alcaraz after Lorenzo Musetti last year.

“I was all the time fighting to find a way to put the match on my own game, but I couldn’t,” Alcaraz said. “I think that was the key of the match. I was all the time defending, I couldn’t find the other way to put myself in a position to attack.

“Comparing to the matches that we have played before, you know, he was on another level today. So, congratulations to him, and, you know, I have to be better if I want to beat this Grigor.”

Dimitrov will now face Nicolas Jarry. The 6-foot-6 Chilean celebrated his 28th birthday topping Diego Schwartzman 6-3, 5-7, 6-3.

Fifth-seeded Andrey Rublev defeated 12th-seeded Tommy Paul 7-5, 7-5 to collect one of his best wins in months. Rublev, the lone Top 10 seed left, will now face the dangerous lefty Ugo Humbert who steamrolled 24-year-old J.J. Wolf in straights 6-1, 6-2.

“I was able to be a bit more calm, [not] get frustrated, especially when he broke me in the first set,” Rublev stated. “I was playing really well. I was a bit unlucky that I had 15-40 in the beginning and he played two points really good. Then he broke me and I was able to keep the same level. That’s why I was able to break him back and in the end, I was able to be a bit more lucky and play a bit better at the end of both sets.”

The quarterfinals open Wednesday with Ben Shelton taking on Sebastian Korda in an all-American showdown.

Hubert Hurkacz also tests Fabian Marozsan. Both quarterfinals are first-time meetings.

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