Resilient Ruud, Russia’s resolute Rublev run riot; robust Rune routs Ramos-Vinolas as Ostapenko sails
- 6 hours ago
Defending Barcelona Open champion Casper Ruud sailed into the last 16 with a 6-4, 6-3 win over Daniel Elahi Galan on Tuesday.
The world number 10, targeting his first trophy of the season, blew away his Colombian opponent hitting 25 winners and without facing a break point.
Norwegian Ruud put heavy pressure on Galan’s serve before securing the only break of the first set in the 10th game.
In the second set Ruud broke for a 4-2 lead and served it out.
Earlier France’s Arthur Fils beat Spaniard Pablo Carreno Busta 7-6 (8/6), 6-3, while last year’s runner-up Stefanos Tsitsipas crushed giant American Reilly Opelka 6-2, 6-2.
Later Tuesday Carlos Alcaraz, who won the Monte Carlo Masters title last Sunday, faces American Ethan Quinn in the first round.
Earlier, world number eight Andrey Rublev cruised into the Barcelona Open last 16 with a 6-1, 6-3 win over Jesper De Jong on Monday.
The Russian has been in poor form of late with just one win in his previous four singles events, but made light work of 94th-ranked De Jong.
Rublev, who recently hired former world number one Marat Safin as his coach, was broken in the fifth game but won the other six to claim the first set with ease.
The 27-year-old broke for a 3-2 lead in the second set and once again when De Jong went long to seal his victory.
Earlier Holger Rune dispatched retiring Spanish veteran Albert Ramos-Vinolas 7-5, 6-4.
The Danish player, ranked 13th, pulled out of the Monte Carlo Masters last week with food poisoning but came back strongly in Barcelona, hitting 28 winners.
“I was very pumped to get a good start after a tough week in Monaco,” said Rune.
“I’m happy to be feeling healthy, that’s an amazing feeling first of all, I’m not struggling with anything.”
World number two Carlos Alcaraz came back from a break down in the second set to defeat Ethan Quinn 6-2, 7-6 (8/6) and reach the Barcelona Open last 16 on Tuesday.
The home favourite, who triumphed at the Monte Carlo Masters last week, stormed through the first set but Quinn, ranked 126th, battled valiantly in the second.
Alcaraz has endured an inconsistent start to the year, crashing out of the Miami Open at the first hurdle in March, as he prepares for his French Open title defence.
The 21-year-old is aiming for a third triumph on the clay in Barcelona, after lifting the trophy in 2022 and 2023. He was unable to participate in the last edition because of injury.
Alcaraz saved all five break points he faced in the first set, breaking Quinn in the third and fifth games for a 5-1 lead.
The Spaniard failed to convert a set point in the seventh game but did so at the third time of asking on his serve after opening up a triple set point.
The second set was topsy-turvy, with both players exchanging breaks on three occasions, forcing a tie-break. Alcaraz saved a set point before dispatching Quinn with a drop shot to claim victory.
Meanwhile, Jelena Ostapenko’s love of power, pace and all things fast is the hallmark of the Latvian’s game style -- but in Stuttgart on Tuesday, she revealed that this isn’t confined to the court.
After advancing when Dayana Yastremska was forced to retire due to illness trailing 6-3, 3-0, Ostapenko was asked about her fearless character in the on-court interview. Rollercoasters are a favored hobby -- Ostapenko specifically rides the “crazy ones” to feel an adrenaline rush -- but at the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix, the conversation naturally turned to cars.
“I love to drive fast,” Ostapenko said. “I also took extreme driving courses where they teach you how to drift and stuff.”
Famously, the tournament offers a Porsche to its champion every year. Ostapenko, however, already has one: at home, she drives a Porsche Cayenne Turbo precisely because it can go so fast. The former Roland Garros champion was tight-lipped on her respect for speed limits though, merely saying with a laugh: “I hope the Latvian police aren’t watching!”
Agencies