Spain’s Carlos Alcaraz made it through to the fourth round of the Cincinnati Open after beating Serbia’s Hamad Medjedovic in straight sets, 6–4, 6–4. The match lasted just 95 minutes, as the world number two handled the 32°C heat well to earn his 50th win of the year.
Alcaraz said afterwards: “Medjedovic doesn’t enjoy running much, so I tried to move him around the court. It was tough with the ball flying and his shots coming fast, but I focused on defending well.”
The 22-year-old has now won 13 matches in a row at Masters 1000 events and continues to chase Jannik Sinner in the ATP rankings. He will face Italy’s Luca Nardi next, after Nardi progressed due to a retirement from Czech player Jakob Mensik.
Alcaraz, a five-time Grand Slam champion, said: “It was a tough match, but I’m happy with the win. The season is long and sometimes you don’t feel great, but staying positive and doing your best is key.”
In another match, Argentina’s Francisco Comesano edged past Reilly Opelka 6–7 (4), 6–4, 7–5 after nearly three hours of play. Both players struggled in the heat, and the match was paused for 45 minutes due to rain. Comesano needed medical help midway through, while Opelka later complained of dizziness and high blood pressure before losing the final game.
Comesano, ranked 71st, now faces ninth seed Andrey Rublev, who beat Alexei Popyrin in three sets: 6–7 (5), 7–6 (5), 7–5.
In the women’s draw, second seed Coco Gauff moved into the fourth round without playing after her opponent, Dayana Yastremska, pulled out due to illness. Gauff, the defending Cincinnati and US Open champion, will next face either Jelena Ostapenko or Lucia Bronzetti.
Elsewhere, Jasmine Paolini beat Ashlyn Krueger 7–6 (2), 6–1, and German qualifier Ella Seidel won a close match against McCartney Kessler 6–4, 2–6, 7–6 (8). Barbora Krejcikova also advanced with a 6–4, 3–6, 6–2 win over Iva Jovic.
