Carlos Alcaraz achieved a new career milestone after beating Jack Draper in the quarterfinals of the Italian Open.
According to Tennis365, Spanish tennis star qualified for the semifinals after defeating world No.5 6-4, 6-4 on Centre Court at the Foro Italico, Rome, on Wednesday, May 14, 2025.
Following the win, the four-time Grand Slam champion will now rise from No. 3 to No. 2 ahead of the French Open when the new rankings come out next Monday, while Alexander Zverev will dip from No. 2 to No. 3.
This means that Alcaraz will be world No. 2 at Roland Garros and cannot play guaranteed No. 1 seed Jannik Sinner until the final in Paris.
It is worth noting the 22-year-old will also become the first man born in the 2000s to reach the quarter-finals of every single Masters 1000 event.
Carlos Alcaraz on new ranking boost
Alcaraz, after winning the match, said, “I think the most important thing I did today was not thinking about the result. Not thinking if I was up or down, just trying to do the things that make me happy on the court, just trying to play aggressively, hitting good shots, drop shots, and coming to the net. That's what I like to do on the court.”
He believes that this mindset made the difference today and helped him to secure victory over Draper, who beat him earlier in their last meeting at the Indian Wells semifinals.
While talking about securing a top two seeding for the clay-court Grand Slam during the on-court interview, he expressed, “I think it’s great being second seed in Roland Garros, knowing that I’m going to not see Jannik before the final, if I reach it. I think it’s great. It’s something that I didn’t think about it, honestly. Before coming here, the No 1, it wasn’t a goal. Knowing that, it’s a great thing.”
Alcaraz will now face either Zverev or Lorenzo Musetti in the last four at the Masters 1000 tournament, the Italian Open, on Friday, May 16, 2025.
