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Spaniard next faces Shelton
May 30, 2025
Carlos Alcaraz during Roland Garros action on Friday evening.
Julian Finney/Getty Images
Carlos Alcaraz during Roland Garros action on Friday evening.
By ATP Staff
Carlos Alcaraz dug out of a late hole Friday at Roland Garros to keep his title defence alive. After a dominant start, the Spaniard eventually had to reset to fend off Damir Dzumhur 6-1, 6-3, 4-6, 6-4.

The 22-year-old trailed by a break early in the fourth set, but regrouped to close it out after a topsy-turvy three hours and 14 minutes. Alcaraz was broken when he served for the match at 5-4, yet responded with a break of his own to advance to the fourth round.

Alcaraz made a hot start by dictating play with aggressive forehands, some of which he pummeled above 100 miles per hour (160 km/h). Dzumhur held break points in all four sets, converting his first on his eighth opportunity. That allowed late drama to unfold inside Court Philippe-Chatrier.

Dzumhur, who hails from Bosnia-Herzegovina, took a more aggressive baseline position and showcased his variety, hitting backhand down the line winners and moving forward to pressure Alcaraz. The Murcia native lacked answers, showing signs of frustration while he committed uncharacteristic errors.

But after letting slip his first nine break chances across the third and fourth set, Alcaraz broke through to get back on serve and halt Dzumhur's inspired run. The 19-time tour-level champion held 21 break chances for the match, converting seven, including one to close the match at 5-4 in the fourth set. Alcaraz finished with 52 winners, 38 from his forehand.

Alcaraz now owns a 30-2 record on clay since last May, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index, highlighted by his maiden Roland Garros title and a run to the silver medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics. The World No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings has won ATP Masters 1000 titles on the surface in 2025 in Monte-Carlo and Rome.

Anchoring the bottom half of the draw as the second seed, Alcaraz next faces 13th seed Ben Shelton in a blockbuster fourth-round clash. Alcaraz leads Shelton 2-0 in their Lexus ATP Head2Head series.

Alcaraz is aiming to become the first man to successfully defend the title in Paris since countryman Rafael Nadal in 2019-20. The four-time major champion has reached at least the fourth round in 11 of his past 12 Slam appearances, only failing to do so at last year’s US Open (l. to van de Zandschulp in R2).

The 33-year-old Dzumhur was competing in the third round of a major for the sixth time and first since 2018 in Paris. That season, he reached a career-high No. 23 in the PIF ATP Rankings.

Defending champion faces Shelton on Sunday in Paris
May 31, 2025
Carlos Alcaraz owns a 21-3 record at Roland Garros.
Adam Pretty/Getty Images
Carlos Alcaraz owns a 21-3 record at Roland Garros.
By ATPTour.com/es Staff
After his round-three match at Roland Garros, Carlos Alcaraz went to sleep at around 3:00 am. When he had finally finished his media duties in the tournament’s mixed zone, he returned to his hotel in Paris, had some dinner, and underwent some routine recovery treatment with his physio.

As a result, the Spaniard and his team took the decision not to practise on Saturday, choosing instead to rest up before his fourth-round clash with Ben Shelton.

The No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings woke up late and spent some of his morning in the hotel gym with his physio, Juanjo Moreno, and fitness coach, Alberto Lledo, recovering from over three hours of wear and tear at the hands of Damir Dzumhur, whom he eventually saw off in four sets.

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Later, Alcaraz took the opportunity to see some of Paris with his loved ones, something he often does on his days off between matches. The 22-year-old has seen several areas of the city over the last few years: the Palace of Versailles, Jardin du Luxembourg, and Parc Monceau, where he was last Thursday. On Saturday, Alcaraz visited the area of Pont Alexandre III, one of the city’s most emblematic spots.

Alcaraz’s city strolls have enabled him to soak in some valuable ‘Vitamin N’ which, through the power of nature and invigorating the senses in natural surroundings, has therapeutic and wellbeing benefits. It is a favourite concept of Moreno, his physio, and the four-time major winner tries his best to adhere to it.

In the evening, Alcaraz has an unmissable appointment in his calendar: the Champions League final between Paris Saint Germain and Inter Milan in Munich. The Spaniard, who has said several times that he would like PSG to win, will have spotted some of the team’s players at his matches this week: Achraf Hakimi, Nuno Mendes, Joao Neves and Desire Doue. He was also alongside Ousmane Dembele at the tournament’s official draw ceremony.

On Sunday, defending champion Alcaraz will square off against Shelton for a place in the Roland Garros quarter-finals, he currently leads their Lexus ATP Head2Head series 2-0.

“He’s a very aggressive player,” Alcaraz said of Shelton. “He puts a lot of energy into his shots and into his matches. I think it’ll be interesting. When we’ve crossed paths we’ve played good tennis. He’s getting better and better on clay.

“We’ll try to improve on the things I did worse today [Friday] and to continue doing the things I’m doing well. We’ll try not to let him take control of the match, and we’ll try to play our own tennis.”

Alcaraz owns a 21-3 record at Roland Garros, according to the Infosys ATP Win/Loss Index. He memorably defeated Alexander Zverev in a five-set final last year to claim his maiden trophy at the clay-court major.

Spaniard lost grip of the racquet when hitting forehand volley in second set
June 01, 2025
Carlos Alcaraz is chasing his fifth major this fortnight.
Getty Images
Carlos Alcaraz is chasing his fifth major this fortnight.
By Sam Jacot
Carlos Alcaraz offered a standout moment of sportsmanship on Sunday during his fourth-round match against Ben Shelton at Roland Garros, where he called a foul on himself at a crucial moment at the start of the second set.

Serving at 7-6(8), 0-0, 30/30, the defending champion approached the net off a forehand and placed a volley into the open court. Shelton scrambled and fired a powerful crosscourt forehand, forcing Alcaraz to stretch fully for the reply. The Spaniard managed to make contact and appeared to hit a clean volley winner.

The point was initially awarded to Alcaraz, but the 22-year-old immediately alerted the umpire that he had lost his grip on the racquet mid-stretch and had made contact with the ball while it was no longer in his hand. By the rules, that meant the point belonged to Shelton.


In his post-match press conference, Alcaraz was asked if he thought about keeping quiet.

"You know, I have to say, I thought, 'OK, I could not say anything,' but I would have felt guilty if I didn't say anything about it," he replied. "It's just about if I know that I did a wrong thing, wrong shots or an illegal shot, I have to say. I have to be honest with myself. I have to be honest with Ben, with everyone.

"I think that's the sport, or [it] should be like this," he continued. "Just to be fair with the opponent, with yourself. I said it because I knew that it was an illegal shot. It shouldn't be allowed, so that's why I said it."

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Despite conceding the point, Alcaraz regrouped quickly and held serve, saving six break points.

In discussing the incident, Alcaraz also noted a moment of sportsmanship from Shelton that went under the radar in the opening set: "Ben had another thing, for example. His serve touched the net. The umpire didn't [call] it, and [Shelton] asked me, 'We can repeat it if you want.'

"So, it's just about the respect we have against each other, and I think that sports in general should be like this."

Defending champion Alcaraz ultimately defeated Shelton 7-6(8), 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 to book his quarter-final spot in the French capital. The No. 2 in the PIF ATP Rankings will next face Tommy Paul.