Alcaraz advances in Shanghai; Zheng to face Andreeva in China Open final

A moustached Carlos Alcaraz beat Juan Manuel Cerundolo 6-3, 6-3 to kick-start his title bid at the Shanghai Masters on Saturday, days after winning the Tokyo Open for his first trophy since returning from injury.

The Spanish star, seeded second, put on a dominant show to brush aside the 55th-ranked Argentinian in the second round in just 66 minutes.

“Really, really happy with the way I played today. It wasn’t easy,” said the 23-year-old former number one.

“Just had two days of preparation... I came from Tokyo, there were totally different conditions,” he added. “Just tried to play the best that I can.”

Sporting a fresh moustache, Alcaraz signed a camera “Moustache Team” following his win.

China's Zheng Qinwen prepares to give the ball to fans as she celebrates after winning against Belgium's Elise Mertens during their women's singles semi-final at the China Open tennis tournament in Beijing on Saturday. AFP

Asked by an on-court interviewer about the new look, Alcaraz said: “It’s gonna stay.”

He will play Zizou Bergs in the next round.

Earlier, Daniil Medvedev fought back to beat Germany’s Jan-Lennard Struff 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 in the second round, the Russian’s first match since being disqualified from the China Open.

Medvedev was defaulted from his semi-final against Novak Djokovic in Beijing for hitting a spectator with a ball and ended the 500-level event with zero ranking points and no prize money.

The former world number one said it was an accident.

Playing five days later in Shanghai, sixth-ranked Medvedev overcame an early wobble to hold off 59th-ranked Struff.

Mirra Andreeva, of Russia, returns a ball to Nikola Bartunkova, of the Czech Republic during the semifinals of the women's singles match in Beijing, on Saturday. AP

Meanwhile, French Open winner Mirra Andreeva will face Olympic champion and home favourite Zheng Qinwen in the China Open final after the Russian fourth seed eased past Nikola Bartunkova and unseeded Zheng overpowered Elise Mertens in Saturday’s semi-finals.

Zheng, who received a wildcard entry to the tournament after recovering from an elbow injury, became the first Chinese player to reach the final in Beijing as she outplayed Belgian 13th seed Mertens 7-5 6-2 after Andreeva crushed Bartunkova 6-2 6-2.

Zheng made an early break to build a 4-2 lead, but made a number of errors to hand Mertens the break back.

But the 24-year-old, who is chasing her first WTA 1000 title on home soil, remained calm to build a 6-5 lead, before her strong crosscourt forehand earned her another break point which she converted when Mertens netted.

Zheng dominated the second set to secure her second clash with Andreeva, having beaten the Russian when they met in the 2024 Beijing quarter-finals.

Agencies