Carlos Alcaraz Matches Another Novak Djokovic & Rafael Nadal Record

By: Gyang Dakwo

Carlos Alcaraz continues to set new records and he did so again on Sunday after his latest win in China.

Alcaraz became the first player to earn 60 tour-level wins in 2023 as he beat Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti 6-2 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals at the China Open in Beijing.

And that was enough to book him his 13th quarter-final appearance of the season, matching a record that was set by tennis legend Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.

Since 2000, only three players under 21 have made more in a calendar year, with Lleyton Hewitt (2001), Rafael Nadal (2005) and Novak Djokovic (2007) all achieving that feat.

It was another snapshot of the impressive consistency Alcaraz has shown in 2023, as he has rarely missed out in the early rounds of tournaments.

“Today was a perfect match for me,” Alcaraz said after his comfortable win against Musetti.

“You can improve and be better every day but I was proud of my tennis playing this level. I played high-quality, great shots and a great return game. It was a great match and I enjoyed playing today.”

Earning 60 wins in a season for the first time in his career is another impressive statistic for Alcaraz, with the last players to achieve that feat being Stefanos Tsitsipas and Felix Auger-Aliassime last year.

Alcaraz will get a chance to move towards 70 match wins for the season in the next few weeks, as he could still have three matches to play in Beijing and will then play in the Shanghai and Paris Masters tournaments before competing in the ATP Finals in Turin.

He is in a race with Djokovic to finish the year as the world No 1 and he has a chance to gain ground on his great rival over the next couple of weeks as the Serbian is not playing in Beijing or Shanghai.