The quarter-final lineup at the 2023 Rolex Paris Master is set. It will feature both of last year’s finalists going head to head as Novak Djokovic and Holger Rune progressed from the Thursday night session at the Accord Hotels Arena.
Earlier in the day, Grigor Dimitrov, Andrey Rublev, Karen Khacanov, Hubert Hurkacz, and Stefanos Tsitsipas booked their spots.
All the while, one man was already waiting for them as Alex de Minaur progressed to the last eight after Jannik Sinner withdrew from his match, citing ‘fatigue’ after his 2.37 a.m. finish last night.
You can see the full results from round 3 below.
Round of 16 Rolex Paris Masters Results
Winner
Loser
Scoreline
Novak Djokovic (1)
Tallon Griekspoor
4-6 7-6(2) 6-4
Alex De Minaur (13)
Jannik Sinner (4)
(W/O)
Andrey Rublev (5)
Botic van de Zandschulp
6-3 6-3
Holger Rune (6)
Daniel Altmaier
6-3 6-3
Stefanos Tsitsipas (7)
Alexander Zverev (10)
7-6(2) 6-4
Hubert Hurkacz (11)
Francisco Cerundolo
6-4 6-3
Karen Khachanov (16)
Roman Safiullin
4-6 6-4 6-2
Grigor Dimitrov
Alexander Bublik
6-2 6-2
Tsitsipas Takes Down Zverev
Stefanos Tstisipas killed two birds with one stone thanks to his 7-6(2), 6-4 win over Sascha Zverev by qualifying for the ATP finals in Turin and, somewhat unbelievably, recording his first top 10 victory of the season so far.
Tsitsipas served solidly throughout, withstanding a small Zverev fightback in the first set to progress in 1 hour and 59 minutes. He’ll face Karen Khachanov in the quarter-finals.
Zveverev, meanwhile, who was probably feeling the after-effects of his 3-hour battle with Ugo Humbert, will likely be joining the Greek in Turin if results go his way. He is currently 7th in the live race.
It’s awesome. What a great relief to finally get that spot. I’ve been working extremely hard the whole year to be in Turin, and it’s a moment of relief that I’ve made it to one of my favourite events of the year. I get the opportunity to play in front of my Italian fans but also get some Greek people in. I’m thrilled to be playing good tennis. I’m humbled by victory now, and I really want to keep going strong and show some of my potential out there on the Bercy court. Tsitsipas on qualifying for Turin.
Djokovic Fends Off Griekspoor
Novak Djokovic came within a whisker of losing to Tallon Griekspoor, coming from a set down to win through 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-4 and extend his winning streak to 15 matches.
The Dutchman won the first set from 1-4 down by winning five straight games and then held two break points at 4-4 in the second set.
However, in true Djokovic style, he erased them and produced one of his trademark rock-solid tie breaks to level.
The Serb then took charge of the decider with a break, but a double fault after some crowd involvement allowed Griekspoor to break back for 4-4, but he instantly buckled down, winning 8 points in a row to take it 6-4.
I don’t want to take anything away from his performance. He didn’t drop the level. Maybe in the third set, a few games, he did a bit, but he was playing at a very high level and credit to him for that performance. If he would be the winner tonight, it would be absolutely deserved. I started off well, but I ran out of steam. I’ve been struggling the last couple of days with my stomach, and I didn’t feel myself at all. I was trying to hold my serve and get to a tie-break, which happened in the second. I got lucky on a couple of shots there. It could have easily gone his way, but overall, I played a good tie-break, and I started to feel better in the third. I’m really, really glad to overcome this challenge. Djokovic on getting over the line against Griekspoor.
Sinner Withdraws Due to Fatigue
The big news of the round was Jannik Sinner withdrawing from his third-round match against Alex de Minaur due to fatigue.
Social Media has been going stir-crazy over the scheduling in Paris and has now crowned Sinner a champion for “sticking it to the ATP” and withdrawing.
I don’t see it this way.
The scheduling is terrible for all involved and needs looking at, but it’s a worse deal for the fans (the people who pay to be there), minimum-wage staff, ball kids, racket stringers and the press/media.
Sinner, while finishing far too late, should have sucked it up and dealt with it. Unless he’s truly on death’s door and can barely move or injured, he should have played.
Instead, I feel he and his team got caught up in the social media hysteria and decided to withdraw. If he wanted to make a point about scheduling, why didn’t he withdraw before his match with McDonald? Players should make a stand and refuse to play any matches starting after midnight. That’s the real move here.
I also cannot imagine a player in the top five from 10 years ago withdrawing due to a late finish. Can you? Fed, Rafa or Novak? Very doubtful.
Over the years, there have been countless examples of players playing twice in one day; Federer, for instance, defeated Leonardo Mayer 6-1, 7-6 in an hour and 12 minutes and then four hours later, he beat Wawrinka 6-7, 7-6, 6-2 in two hours and 16 minutes to make the semi-finals in Cincinnati in 2018. Withdraw? No, he made the final.
Other Matches of Note
Dimitrov Blasts Past Bublik: Another high-quality display from the Bulgarian who’s now made back-to-back Masters 1000 quarter-finals.
Rublev Routines van de Zandschulp: A 20th Masters 1000 match win of 2023 for the Russian as he comfortably defeated Botic van de Zandschulp 6-3, 6-3.
Khachanov Sinks Safiullin: The all-Russian encounter went in the favour of the former Bercy champion, who came from a set down to win 4-6 6-4 6-2.
Rune Aces Altmaier: An impressive 6-3, 6-3 win over German Daniel Altmaier and Rune is yet to drop a set so far this week as he looks to defend his title.
Paris Masters 2023 Quarter Final Matches
Novak Djokovic (1) vs Holger Rune (6)
Alex de Minaur (13) vs Andrey Rublev (5)
Hubert Hurkacz (11) vs Grigor Dimitrov
Stefanos Tsitsips (7) vs Karen Khachanov (16)
What do you think about Sinner’s withdrawal? And who do you think will be in the semi-finals? Let me know in the comments.