China Open: Carlos Alcaraz sweeps into final as home hero Zhang Shuai extends fairy tale
Spaniard will meet world No 1 Jannik Sinner, who beat China’s Bu Yunchaokete, while Zhang becomes lowest-ranked player to reach quarter-finals
Carlos Alcaraz sent Daniil Medvedev packing to reach his first China Open final on Tuesday as 595th-ranked Zhang Shuai added another chapter to her fairy tale renaissance.
Second seed Alcaraz was in fine form to win 7-5, 6-3 and faces world No 1 and defending champion Jannik Sinner – who defeated Chinese wild card Bu Yunchaokete 6-3, 7-6 (3) – for the men’s crown in Beijing.
Medvedev, the Russian third seed, was looking to emulate his run to last year’s title-decider, where he was beaten by the Italian Sinner.
But he showed signs of frustration at times against 21-year-old Alcaraz and twice required treatment on his left leg in the second set.
“I think I played really well. Obviously if I want to beat Daniil, I have to play really good tennis, high-quality tennis,” said four-time major champion Alcaraz, who is yet to drop a set.
“I felt great on the court once again, so I’m really happy about it. I think I couldn’t ask for a better semi-final.”