Alcaraz Garners ATP-Leading 50th Victory Of Season At Cincinnati Open

Carlos Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz (photo: ATP Tour video)

CINCINNATI/WASHINGTON, August 13, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

World No. 2 and 2023 Cincinnati Open finalist, Carlos Alcaraz, aimed to win his 50th match of the season when he faced 2023 NextGen ATP Finals champion Hamad Medjedovic at the Lindner Family Tennis Center in Mason, Ohio Tuesday afternoon. 

The 22-year-old Spaniard, himself a NextGen champion, brought a 12-match winning streak at the ATP Masters 1000 level into his third-round match with the young Serbian on P&G Center Court, after winning titles in Monte-Carlo and Rome earlier this season. Coupled with a remarkable 34-2 run since April, everything pointed in favor of Alcaraz.

Plus, a win over Medjedovic, 22, would give Alcaraz his fourth-straight 50-plus-win season, becoming the first since Novak Djokovic in 2013-16 – and that’s just what he did. Alcaraz defeated Medjedovic, 6-4, 6-4, in one hour and 35 minutes to move into the fourth round in the final tune-up for the US Open, which starts in less than two weeks.

Alcaraz hit 16 winners – including 12 aces – and won 79 percent of his first-serve points. He converted three of seven break-point chances against Medjedovic and outpointed his opponent 74-62. Medjedovic countered with 25 winners but was ultimately undone by 38 unforced errors against Alcaraz. 

“I know he’s a really powerful player,” Alcaraz said during his on-court interview with ATP Media, after improving to 50-6 this season. “His shots are incredibly hard to return. He has a big serve also. I know he doesn’t like to run too much from side to side, so my plan was to make him run as much as I could.

“It was difficult because his ball flies and it comes really fast, but I’m just glad that I did it most of the time, tried to defend in a good way. I’m just really happy to get the win.”

Next, Alcaraz will face 98th-ranked Italian lucky loser Luca Nardi, who advanced via retirement over No. 16 seed Jakub Mensik of Czechia after 42 minutes of play on Court 3. Nardi led 6-2, 2-1 when Mensik retired. It’s the second ATP Masters 1000 fourth round this year that Nardi has reached as a lucky loser after Indian Wells last March. Nardi became the fifth lucky loser to reach the fourth round at Cincinnati this century. The most recent was Alexei Popyrin of Australia in 2023.

Around the Cincinnati Open

• No. 71 Francisco Comesana of Argentina overcame big-serving American Reilly Opelka to advance to the fourth round with a 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-5 victory in three hours and eight minutes on P&G Center Court. The 73rd-ranked Opelka had match point at 5-4 (30-40) on Comesana’s serve in the third set before rain fell and delayed play for 45 minutes. Upon resumption, Comesana saved two more match points and eventually broke Opelka to go ahead 6-5. Soon, he won his 16th match of the season on his own second match-point opportunity, after Opelka netted a forehand return.

Both players required medical attention for heat-related ailments as temperatures soared to 90º Fahrenheit (32º Celsius) early Tuesday afternoon.

Comesana, withstood 56 winners from Opelka, who fired 27 aces. He hit 15 aces of his own to go along with 31 overall winners. Opelka committed 57 unforced errors. Comesana, who was playing in his second ATP Masters 1000 third round after Madrid in April, became the first Argentine man to reach the Cincinnati fourth round since Diego Schwartzman in 2022. His win over Opelka, in which he outpointed him 117-109, moved him up to No. 54 in the PIF ATP Live Rankings.

• Next, Comesana will face No. 9 seed Andrey Rublev of Russia, who needed three hours and 29 minutes to put away No. 21 Alexei Popyrin of Australia, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 7-5. The final nine games were played after a 45-minute rain delay that began with Rublev ahead 2-1 in the final set. The win leveled their career head-to-head at 2-all. The last time they met, Popyrin defeated Rublev to win the 2024 ATP Masters 1000 title in Montreal, Canada.

Rublev, who won his 28th match of the 2025 season with his victory against Popyrin, is through to the fourth round at Cincinnati for the fifth time in eight appearances, highlighted by his reaching the 2021 final before losing to Alexander Zverev. He hit 18 aces and 42 overall winners, converted two of eight break points and outpointed Popyrin 132-119.

“It was crazy, I don’t know what to say,” Rublev said during his on-court interview with ATP Media. “It was super difficult, especially since Alexei is a really great player. He’s tough to play against in these conditions. He’s got a huge serve and forehand. He’s playing well. Today, he was a set up. Last couple of time’s he’s beaten me quite easy – especially in the final in Montreal last year. 

“For me, it was a huge challenge today. Knowing I lost the first set, to be able to come back – especially with the way he’s serving and playing – it was a huge effort of mine. I’m really happy about it.”

• World No. 12 Karen Khachanov of Russia has now won 10 straight matches versus players ranked outside the Top 10 after defeating 101st-ranked wild card Jenson Brooksby of the United States, 6-3, 6-3, in one hour and 24 minutes on the Grandstand. Last week’s Toronto finalist, Khachanov hit 11 winners, converted four of seven break points and outpointed Brooksby 63-47.

The 14th-seeded Khachanov (29-17) is through to his fifth Cincinnati round of 16 in eight appearances and is looking to return to the ATP Top 10 for the first time since June 2023. Brooksby dropped to 4-6 against Top-20 opponents this season.

Next, Khachanov will play either World No. 3 and third seed Alexander Zverev of Germany or No. 27 seed Brandon Nakashima of the United States, whose match was suspended by rain Tuesday evening with Zverev leading 6-4, 5-4 and serving for the match. It will be resumed on Wednesday. Zverev and Nakashima played for an hour and 32 minutes before it was halted by rain for the second time.

• No. 22 seed Jiri Lehecka of Czechia earned his 30th victory of the season with his 7-6 (5), 7-6 (3) victory over No. 85 Adam Walton of Australia in an hour and 54 minutes on Champions’ Court. It’s the third straight season Lehecka has achieved 30-plus wins after reaching 30 last year and 34 in 2023). 

Against Walton, Lehecka fired 17 aces and hit 42 winners overall to 35 unforced errors. He won 90 percent of his first-serve points, dropping only four points on first serve, and converted one of two break-point chances. Lehecka outpointed Walton 81-71.

Next, Lehecka will face either World No. 6 and fifth seed Ben Shelton of the United States or No. 53 Roberto Bautista Agut of Spain, whose match was postponed Tuesday night due to rain and rescheduled for Wednesday.

Tuesday’s Cincinnati Open results

Wednesday’s Cincinnati Open order of play

By the numbers

With 38 wins this season, Taylor Fritz has the third-most victories in 2025 on the ATP Tour. He trails Carlos Alcaraz (50) and Alexander Zverev (40).

“Quotable …”

“I love America! I love the [US] Open, the energy, summer, crowds are having a good time. I love D.C., Toronto, here.”

– No. 10 seed Frances Tiafoe of the United States, during his on-court interview after defeating No. 20 seed Ugo Humbert on Monday, describing why he does so well playing in the North American tournaments each summer.

 

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