Roland-Garros: Alcaraz books spot in last 4, will face Musetti next

Carlos Alcaraz won against Tommy Paul 6-0, 6-1, 6-4 on Tuesday evening and will play Italian Lorenzo Musetti, the No 8 seed, in the next round

Dante Badano / PsnewZ

Lucas Morlier

June 3, 2025

Roland Garros •Quarter-final • Completed

See draw

T. PaulvsC. Alcaraz

He had seen his main rival Jannik Sinner make a strong statement since the start of the fortnight, dismantling his opponents. Carlos Alcaraz delivered his best response in the quarterfinals: the Spaniard showed no mercy to Tommy Paul, whom he crushed in the night session (6-0, 6-1, 6-4) in just 1 hour and 34 minutes. He will face Lorenzo Musetti in the semifinals — their third meeting on clay this year, after Monte Carlo and Rome.

“I could have closed my eyes, and everything would still go in”, Carlos Alcaraz said after the match in his on-court interview with Mats Wilander.

Impressive on serve (losing only five points behind his first serve, not facing a single break point), and magical on return (earning 17 break points and converting six), Alcaraz fully demonstrated the gap between the world’s top two players and the rest of the field — even more so in Grand Slam tournaments. Paul had to wait until the eighth game of the match (6-0, 1-0) to finally get on the scoreboard.

After dropping a set in each of his previous three rounds (against Fabian Marozsan, Damir Dzumhur, and Ben Shelton), Alcaraz was determined to eliminate the lapses in focus that have marked his campaign since the start of the fortnight. Unplayable in the first two sets, the protégé of Juan Carlos Ferrero saw his opponent respond as best he could, taking more risks with his shots.

The quickest night session ever at Roland-Garros

But of course, it wasn’t enough. At 4-all in the final set, the match shifted again with another break by Alcaraz, who wrapped up the lesson on his serve — under a few whistles from the Philippe-Chatrier crowd. Never before had a night session been this short since the introduction of “night matches” in 2021.

“My feeling today was incredible, said Alcaraz. “I was trying to hit every shot at 100%, without thinking about anything else. It was one of those matches where everything went in. I’ve played Tommy several times, and every match has been very tough. He beat me twice. I tried not to let him get into the match.”

Lorenzo Musetti awaits Carlos Alcaraz for a place in the Roland-Garros final. The Spaniard has already beaten him this year in Monte Carlo and Rome. He also crushed him in Paris two years ago. The favorite will be the Spaniard.