Defending Champion Zverev Pushed To The Brink In Paris Masters Opener

Alexander Zverev
Alexander Zverev (photo: Jürgen Hasenkopf)

PARIS/WASHINGTON, October 29, 2025 (by Michael Dickens)

Reigning Rolex Paris Masters champion Alexander Zverev began his campaign to become the second man in tournament history to defend his title Wednesday afternoon inside Paris La Défense Arena.

Nobody said it would be easy.

Not since Novak Djokovic put together a trio of Paris title runs from 2013-15 has anyone before or after been able to successfully defend his crown in the City of Lights.

However, the World No. 3 from Germany, who came in with a 16-8 win-loss record at ATP Masters 1000 level this season, highlighted by runs to the Toronto and Cincinnati semifinals, rose to the occasion of playing on Court Central and advanced to the round of 16 over 49th-ranked Camilo Ugo Carabelli of Argentina. He came from behind to win, 6-7 (5), 6-1, 7-5, in two hours and 35 minutes.

Three days after losing the Erste Bank Open final to Jannik Sinner, the 28-year-old German No. 1 was back on court against Ugo Carabelli, a 26-year-old gritty and tattooed Argentine looking to record the first Top-20 win of his career after going 0-9 – and to become the third player from Argentina to defeat Zverev this season after Francisco Cerundolo (Buenos Aires and Madrid) and Francisco Comesana (Rio de Janeiro). 

Although Zverev was roughed up in the first set, he gutted out the tough opening-round win – his sixth-straight victory at the Paris event – and improved to 19-2 against players outside the Top 30 since Roland-Garros. At a set apiece and 5-all in the third set, Zverev converted his fourth break point of the second-round match, then served it out for his 52nd victory of the season. Zverev struck 39 winners, won 27 points at the net, and outpointed Ugo Carabelli 110-91.

During his on-court interview with ATP Media, Zverev agreed it was a good win, especially coming after the disappointment of losing to Sinner in three tough sets in the Vienna title match Sunday. “Yes, definitely, especially after a tough [loss] last week. I didn’t expect [Ugo] to come out and play the way he did,” he said. “To be very honest with myself, it’s something I have to learn from. I beat him quite easily in Rome and he was no where near that level. It’s a mistake for me. I have to prepare better for my opponent.

“He was fantastic today, he was serving incredible, playing forehands unbelievable. His backhand slice was nasty on this surface. I’m happy with the win because it wasn’t easy.”

The final statistics weren’t necessarily pretty for Zverev. He committed 41 unforced errors compared to 28 for Ugo Carabelli, and the Argentine hit 17 winners and won 81 percent (46 of 57) of his first-serve points. However, Zverev got over the finish line with the victory.

Next, Zverev will face No. 15 seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain, who scored a contentious victory over 62nd-ranked French wild card Arthur Cazaux, 7-6 (5), 6-4, in one hour and 59 minutes on Court 1.

Davidovich Fokina saved all four break points he faced from Cazaux and broke his opponent once to open the second set – but it was enough. He outpointed his opponent 83-77.

Vacherot victorious, again; extends Masters winning streak

In a rematch of their Rolex Shanghai Masters final from two weeks ago, cousins Arthur Rinderknech of France and Monaco’s Valentin Vacherot faced off against each other again. There was plenty of family pride at stake plus Rinderknech was eager to avenge the loss to his younger cousin on his home soil and at his home Masters.

Throughout the entirety of their second-round match on Court Central, Rinderknech and Vacherot pushed each other from first ball to last ball and rose to the occasion. By the end of their two-hour, 54-minute skirmish on Court Central at La Défense in front of an enthusiastic crowd, Vacherot prevailed like he did in Shanghai, winning 6-7 (9), 6-3, 6-4. The victory extended his ATP Masters 1000 winning streak to nine following his Shanghai title run.

“I knew 90 percent of the crowd would be for Arthur and I have so much respect for him and for the crowd,” Vacherot (14-3 at tour-level this season) said during his on-court interview. “Of course, I am surprising myself with what I am doing at the moment. I had so much fun to be on the court with Arthur, to be here in Paris. The crowd deserved their Shanghai final!”

Both cousins shared a warm embrace at the net at the conclusion. While there was a lot of pain on the faces of both competitors as was to be expected – after all, both played well enough to win – by the end Vacherot succeeded with power and finesse. The 40th-ranked Monegasque No. 1 hit 32 winners – including six aces – and won 75 percent (42 of 46) of his first-serve points. He saved 11 of 13 break points he faced and converted five of 11 chances. Vacherot outpointed Rinderknech 113-104.

“I have full respect for Arthur and for what we’re doing,” added Vacherot, who will face No. 31 Cameron Norrie of Great Britain on Thursday in the round of 16.

Vacherot played many of the most important points under pressure. In the first-set tie-break, he saved a set point at 8-7 with a backhand push volley winner to cap a 21-shot rally, but Rinderknech was up to the challenge, too. At 9-all, they played on – and the fans were soaking up every minute of it. Rinderknech won the one-hour, 15-minute opening set 11-9 after Vacherot double faulted.

Then, after Vacherot rallied to level the second-round match by winning the 39-minute middle set 6-3, it was on to a decider. Level at 3-all after each player exchanged service breaks, Vacherot got the crowd fired up with a booming fifth-shot overhead smash to hold serve for 4-3. Soon after, ahead 5-4, Vacherot broke his cousin one last time and won the match on his second match-point opportunity.

“We played an incredible match. It was very enjoyable,” the 29th-ranked Rinderknech said during his post-match news conference, translated from French. 

“I put up an ultimate fight from the beginning to the end with everything I had. It didn’t work for me.

“I also have confidence, but he’s also riding a wonderful momentum, and he deserves it,” Rinderknech added. “He’s riding a strong momentum. He’s on a good streak, and he went for his shots. He was offensive, and it suited him well. Maybe, it suited him better than for me, actually. And this is how he won.”

Sinner begins quest to retake World No. 1 with solid win

World No. 2 Jannik Sinner began the quest for his first Paris title with a solid, all-around performance in defeating No. 41 Zizou Bergs of Belgium, 6-4, 6-2, in an hour and 27 minutes on Court Central to close out the Wednesday day session.

The second-seeded Sinner from Italy, making his fourth appearance in Paris, extended his indoor match winning streak to 22 and reached the third round for the second time. He hit 19 winners and won 75 percent of his service points against Bergs, whom he was facing for the first time. Sinner faced no break points on his serve, converted three of 11 break points – including in the 12-minute first game of the match – and outpointed the popular Bergs 66-52. 

The Belgian No. 1 fell to 0-4 against Top-5 competition – 1-10 lifetime against Top-10 players. 

“I felt like mostly the movement [was good],” Sinner said during his post-match TV interview. “It’s a very unique court here. Usually I always struggled a bit, so I’m very happy to come through the first match. I’m very happy how I served today – I was very precise – and I also started off with a break straight away, which gives you a bit more confidence. I’m very happy about today’s performance. Let’s see what’s coming tomorrow.”

After World No. 1 and top seed Carlos Alcaraz‘s surprise opening-round loss on Tuesday evening, Sinner could return to World No. 1 next Monday if he wins the Rolex Paris Masters title on Sunday. Next, he will face No. 21 Francisco Cerundolo of Argentina, on Thursday. Cerundolo held off No. 53 Miomir Kecmanovic of Serbia, 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (4), in two hours and 26 minutes on Court 2, behind 14 aces. He outpointed his opponent 111-108.

Around La Défense Arena

• No. 6 seed Alex de Minaur of Australia garnered his ATP Tour-leading 41st hard-court win of the season and reached the round of 16 at the eighth of nine ATP Masters 1000 events this season, becoming the fourth man to achieve the feat in the last 10 years with his 7-6 (8), 4-6, 6-3 victory over No. 42 Gabriel Diallo of Canada, in two hours and 37 minutes on Court 1.

De Minaur overcame 32 unforced errors by hitting 14 winners and broke Diallo’s serve four times in 10 opportunities. He outpointed his opponent 105-97.

Next, de Minaur will face No. 10 seed and 2018 Paris champion Karen Khachanov of Russia, who fought past No. 28 Joao Fonseca of Brazil, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, in one hour and 50 minutes on Court Central in back of 23 winners and eight aces. He outpointed the Brazilian teenager 80-67.

• No. 8 seed Casper Ruud was upset by Germany’s 50th-ranked Daniel Altmaier, 6-3, 7-5, in an hour and 25 minutes on Court 1. The ninth-ranked Norwegian was knocked out of contention for one of the top eight spots at the Nitto ATP Finals with the loss but could still make it as an alternate. 

Altmaier struck 28 winners – including 10 aces – and dropped only five points on his first serve as he won 86 percent (32 of 37) of his first-serve points. He broke Ruud’s serve three times in five opportunities and benefited from his opponent’s 22 unforced errors. Altmaier outpointed Ruud 66-53. It was Altmaier’s second Top-10 win this season and he’s through to his fourth career ATP Masters 1000 round of 16.

Next, Altmaier will face No. 9 seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada, who was pushed to the brink before prevailing in a third-set tiebreaker to defeat 44th-ranked Alexandre Muller of France, 5-7, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (4), in three hours and four minutes on Court 1. 

Auger-Aliassime’s 50th winner of the match – the 23rd from his forehand side – capped a 16-shot rally on his second match-point opportunity. He fired 21 aces and won 83 percent (55 of 66) of his first-serve points. Muller, who struck 20 winners of his own, outpointed Auger-Aliassime 120-115 – but it wasn’t enough to keep the World No. 10 from achieving his 46th victory of the season, which keeps him in contention for the final spot in the PIF ATP Live Race To Turin. He’s currently in ninth place.

Also, Auger-Aliassime improved his win-loss record this season against Frenchmen to 10-1 and it’s the third time he’s reached the round of 16 at Paris.

• No. 11 seed Daniil Medvedev of Russia received a walk over into the third round after Grigor Dimitrov pulled out of the singles draw Wednesday morning. Dimitrov, 34, was playing in his first tournament since withdrawing in the fourth round at Wimbledon with a pectoral muscle tear. The 38th-ranked Bulgarian defeated No. 56 Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard of France in his first-round match Monday evening. However, this time, a shoulder injury shelved Dimitrov before meeting Medvedev for the 12th time in their head-to-head series, led by the Russian 8-3.

Next, Medvedev will face No. 45 Lorenzo Sonego of Italy, who rallied to take out fellow Italian and No. 7 seed Lorenzo Musetti, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1, in one hour and 56 minutes on Court 1 Wednesday evening. Sonego converted four of five break-point opportunities and outpointed Musetti 75-65. It was Sonego’s first Top-10 triumph in more than two years.

The World No. 8 Musetti’s loss means that World No. 4 Taylor Fritz has become the fifth player to clinch a berth for the Nitto ATP Finals in Turin.

• No. 13 seed Alexander Bublik of Kazakhstan advanced to face fourth seed Taylor Fritz of the United States in the round of 16 after defeating No. 32 Corentin Moutet of France, 6-3, 7-5, in one hour and 36 minutes on Court Central.

Bublik, who has won 28 of his last 35 matches since Roland-Garros, fired 31 winners and saved the only break point he faced. He outpointed Moutet 73-62.

Wednesday’s Rolex Paris Masters results

Thursday’s Rolex Paris Masters order of play

By the numbers

Alexander Zverev is on a six-match winning streak at the Rolex Paris Masters after winning his seventh and most recent ATP Masters 1000 title in Paris last year. He is attempting to become the first repeat champion at this event since Novak Djokovic (2013-15).

“Quotable …”

“When I was younger, I felt much more pressure when I was playing with [the] crowd on my side, and nowadays I just love playing with them. I think their support, it helps me a lot to stay in the match. When things are bad, when things are good, they are there to support.

“So, I love playing with the crowd. I know that everywhere I go there are some Brazilians and that’s super nice. I love representing my country, so it’s a pleasure just representing them, and that everywhere I go, every match I play, there are some Brazilians cheering.”

– Joao Fonseca of Brazil, during his post-match news conference Tuesday, after defeating Canada’s Denis Shapovalov. On Wednesday evening, the 28th-ranked reigning Next Gen ATP Finals champion and recent Basel champion saw his five-match winning streak end as he lost to No. 10 seed and 2018 Paris champion Karen Khachanov of Russia, 6-1, 3-6, 6-3, in one hour and 50 minutes on Court Central.

 

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