Roland Garros: Carlos Alcaraz ahead amid ups and downs, Borges humbles Ruud
Two different stories, two opposite fates on day four at Roland Garros. Carlos Alcaraz advances to the third round, not without difficulty, while Casper Ruud resoundingly waves goodbye to the tournament as early as the second round of the Paris Slam. The French tournament continues to surprise, with unexpected results rewriting the picture of the men’s draw.
Alcaraz, the defending champion, overcame Hungary’s Fabian Marozsan (whom he had beaten at the Internazionali d’Italia) with a score of 6-1, 4-6, 6-1, 6-2 in a challenge made up of ups and downs. The first set was a real show of strength for the Spaniard: pounding rhythm, precise strokes and spectacular winners. A 6-1 in 26 minutes that presaged an easy day.
The second set, however, showed the other side of Carlos: a few too many errors, a break suffered at the start and the tenacity of the Hungarian who was able to defend the lead until 6-4. But the world number two, and fresh winner of the Rome Masters 1000 against Jannik Sinner, reacted like a champion: in the third set he immediately put the arrow in the lead, imposing his game and closing quickly on 6-1. The fourth set confirmed his definitive recovery: 6-2 and third-round qualification in the bag. Now for the Spaniard it will be either Bosnian Damir Džumhur or Frenchman Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard.
If Alcaraz struggled but won, Casper Ruud had a day to forget. The Norwegian, a finalist in 2022 and 2023, was eliminated in four sets by Nuno Borges, a Portuguese player on the rise. After a good first set won by Ruud, the match changed. Borges raised the level, while the Norwegian visibly dropped, leaving the court with the very clear score of 3-6, 6-4, 6-1, 6-0.
An elimination that weighs heavily, not least because it comes in a tournament that has already said goodbye to Daniil Medvedev, Taylor Fritz, Francisco Cerundolo and Grigor Dimitrov. Now Borges will find Alexei Popyrin in the third round, as Roland Garros loses one of its most anticipated players.
