Cincinnati Masters Highlights: Djokovic, Alcaraz enter quarterfinal

Cincinnati Masters 2023: Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz made it to the quarterfinal at the Cincinnati Masters 2023 on Thursday, 17th August 2023. Djokovic defeated veteran Gael Monfils 6-3, 6-2 in the third round. Carlos Alcaraz avenged his Canadian Open loss against Tommy Paul as he defeated the American 7-6, 6-7, 6-3. Meanwhile the day also saw some big upsets as third seed Daniil Medvedev, fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas suffered losses. In the Women’s Singles, third Jessica Pegula lost to Marie Bouzkova 4-6, 0-6.

Also Read: Cincinnati Masters LIVE: Novak Djokovic and Gael Monfils to battle for spot in quarterfinal

Cincinnati Masters Third Round

Men’s Singles

Daniil Medvedev LOST TO Alexander Zverev – 4–6, 7-5, 4 6
Stefanos Tsitsipas LOST TO Hubert Hurkacz – 3-6, 4-6
Carlos Alcaraz BEAT Tommy Paul – 7-6, 6-7, 6-3
Novak Djokovic BEAT Gael Monfils – 6-3, 6-2

Women’s Singles

Iga Swiatek BEAT Qinwen Zheng – 3-6, 6-1, 6-1
Elena Rybakina LOST TO Jasmine Paolini – 4-6, 5-2
Jessica Pegula LOST TO Marie Bouzkova – 4-6, 0-6

Daniil Medvedev vs Alexander Zverev

Alexander Zverev upset third seed Daniil Medvedev 6-4 5-7 6-4 on Thursday in the third round at the Cincinnati Masters 2023. With the win, the 2019 champion secured his spot in the Cincinnati Open quarter-finals.

Zverev came into the match with a 6-9 record versus Medvedev. Having lost all three of their meetings this year, broke the Russian three times and saved six of eight break points to seal victory in two hours 32 minutes.

Stefanos Tsitsipas vs Hubert Hurkacz

Hubert Hurkacz downed fourth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-3, 6-4 in a classy all-around display to enter the quarterfinal. With the win, the World No. 20 snapped his six-match losing streak against Top 10 opponents that had stretched back to Montreal in 2022.

“I’m really pleased with the way I played, with the way I tried to use the conditions, because it was really tricky,” said Hurkacz, who had also not reached a Masters 1000 quarter-final since Montreal last year. “It was super windy, and the ball was definitely moving a lot. I’m really pleased with this victory because it has been a long time without a quarter-final in a Masters event. I’m happy with the victory and happy with the work with all my team.”

Carlos Alcaraz vs Tommy Paul

Carlos Alcaraz and Tommy Paul added another intriguing chapter to their budding rivalry on Thursday at the Western & Southern Open, where the former prevailed 7-6(6), 6-7(0), 6-3 in a third-round thriller in Cincinnati.

Just seven days on from Paul’s victory against Alcaraz in the Toronto quarter-finals, the American once again proved a tough opponent for the World No. 1. Unlike in Canada, however, Alcaraz found a way past his foe in Ohio, holding his nerve in a rain-affected decider after letting slip three match points in the second set for a three-hour, 10 minute third-round triumph.

“It was a really tough match. We were playing a really close match before the rain came. But I think I did pretty well [dealing with] the wait in the gym, warming up,” said Spaniard, who spent over six hours on court to earn three-set wins against Jordan Thompson and Paul this week.

Novak Djokovic vs Gael Monfils

Novak Djokovic extended his dominance against Gel Monfils with a 6-3, 6-2 victory. Djokovic now owns the most wins without a defeat in any ATP Head2Head matchup — breaking a tie with Rafael Nadal, who is 18-0 against Richard Gasquet.

“It was kind of an evolution of both players over the past 15-plus years that we’ve been playing each other in different parts of the world, also in juniors,” Djokovic said of their history.

“I think early on I struggled a lot with him, I think physically as well. When you play on of the most athletic guys on the Tour, you have to be ready, every ball comes back. A couple of points today, especially in the first set he showed his athleticism.”

Women’s Singles