The round of 32 at the 2023 Rolex Shanghai Masters is complete, and the upset of the round was Seb Korda defeating Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.
In a rematch from this year’s Australian Open, Korda again got the better of his opponent to record his first top 5 win.
Elsewhere, Carlos Alcaraz saw off Dan Evans in a highly entertaining match, with Evans throwing in his entire repertoire of variety to produce some brilliant points, which had both men covering every inch of the court.
The final encounter of the last 32 featured Stefanos Tsitsipas, who Ugo Humbert humbled. The Greek has been stuck in a rut. Does his form tie in with his coaching situation, or has his form dropped off a cliff since he began force-feeding the world his relationship with Paula Badosa?
You can see the whole round of results below.
Round of 32 Rolex Shanghai Masters Results
Winner
Loser
Scoreline
Carlos Alcaraz (1)
Dan Evans (30)
7-6(1) 6-4
Sebastian Korda (26)
Daniil Medvedev (2)
7-6(8) 6-2
Ugo Humber
Stefanos Tsitsipas
6-4 3-6 7-5
Jannik Sinner (6)
Sebastian Baez (25)
3-6 6-3 6-2
Diego Schwartzman (WC)
Taylor Fritz (7)
6-4 3-6 7-6(5)
Casper Ruud (8)
Christopher Eubanks (29)
6-4 6-2
Tommy Paul (12)
Arthur Fils
6-4 6-7(7) 6-4
Grigor Dimitrov (18)
Karen Khachanov (13)
7-6(6) 6-4
Hubert Hurkacz (16)
Yu Hsiou Hsu (Q)
6-4 6-4
Ben Shelton (19)
Roman Safiullin
3-6 6-3 6-4
Francisco Cerundolo (20)
Marton Fucsovics
3-6 6-4 7-5
Nicolas Jarry (22)
Lorenzo Sonego
7-6(4) 6-2
J.J. Wolf
Matteo Arnaldi
2-6 6-3 7-6(4)
Fabian Marozsan
Dusan Lajovic
6-3 6-3
Zhizhen Zhang
Brandon Nakashima
7-6(2) 6-2
Korda Ends Medvedev Title Defence Bid
It was like Melbourne all over again for Daniil Medvedev as he fell to Seb Korda in straight sets, with the American coming through 7-6(8), 6-2.
It was Korda’s biggest win of his career, and he had to work hard to record it, saving three set points in the first set tiebreak, one with a ridiculous point.
After that, he took charge as Medvedev looked increasingly frustrated on court, perhaps with the conditions which he indicated went from the fastest in 2019 to the slowest in 2023.
We played really good tennis from the beginning. We had some long rallies. I’m just really happy to get that first set under my belt and then it was just a matter of getting into one of his service games and hopefully taking it home after. He’s so quick, it’s really tough to get anything by him, especially when you have a court this big and the balls get pretty fluffy out here so it gets a little bit slower,” said Korda. “It was definitely one of the points of the year for me, I don’t know about anyone else, but I’m just very happy with the way I played today. It’s been a very difficult year for sure I had a long pause on my year for three months, especially when I was playing some of the best tennis of my career so far. It was difficult, but it’s a long journey and I’m happy with the way I played today. It’s definitely one of the biggest victories in my career for sure. Korda on his win over Medvedev.
Sinner Maintains Winning Run
Jannik Sinner is enjoying himself in the Far East, racking up his 7th consecutive win thanks to a hard-fought 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 over Sebastian Baez.
Baez has proven himself to be a durable competitor this season, and he showed his best in the first set, but he couldn’t match Sinner’s consistency throughout the match as the Italian took charge from the baseline.
I was expecting a very tough match. He was playing really well in the first set. In the second set, I tried to play a bit more aggressively, which worked better. When you start by going a break up immediately in the second, it is a little bit easier to get into the rhythm. I’m very proud of how I handled the situation. Sinner on his win over Baez.
Schwartzman Finishes Fritz
It wasn’t long ago that Diego Schwartzman would have been seeded at the Shanghai Masters, but a poor run of form has seen his ranking slip, and he’s only in the draw courtesy of a wildcard.
However, this week, he’s rolled back the years, beating Jiri Lehecka and now upsetting Taylor Fritz 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(5) to book his spot in the last sixteen.
I think since Roland Garros my tennis was changing. I was winning at least one match in every single tournament, Obviously this is not my year, so that is why that at the end of the year to have these kinds of tournaments is great. Not many tournaments to come, but it is going to make a difference. Schwartzman on his season so far.
Alcaraz Aces Evans
Alcaraz vs Evans is fast becoming one of the more exciting matchups on tour, and while Evans has yet to get the better of the Spaniard, he certainly forces him to bring out his best tennis.
This match was no different, with plenty of cat-and-mouse type points, with Evans holding a 4-2 lead in the first set, but ultimately, Alcaraz came out on top over the duration, making very few errors in the second set to progress.
If only Evans had that big shot or 1-2 combo to land himself more free points like Federer was able to, because with that, he’d likely be Top 10/5 given the rest of his game + variety.
It was a really tough match. It was one of the toughest matches I have played outside of the Grand Slams. Every time I play Daniel it is a tricky match and I have to play my best to beat him… Both of us played a high quality of tennis and I am really happy to get through. Alcaraz on his matchup with Evans
Other Matches of Note
Rublev Routs Mannarino: A comprehensive win for the Russian against the inform Mannarino. 6-3 6-0, featuring 35 winners to just five unforced errors.
Shelton Sinks Safiullin: The American has picked up some decent wins this week, and seeing off Safiullin, who made the final in Chengdu, is a solid performance.
Humbert Humbles Tstisipas: A third-set fightback still wasn’t enough for Tsitsipas as Humbert broke in the final game of the match to seal the win.
Shanghai Masters Round of 16 Matches
Carlos Alcaraz (1) vs Grigor Dimitrov (18)
Nicolas Jarry (22) vs Diego Schwartzman (WC)
Ugo Humbert (32) vs J.J. Wolf
Tommy Paul (12) vs Andrey Rublev (5)
Casper Ruud (8) vs Fabian Marozsan
Hubert Hurkacz (16) vs Zhizhen Zhang
Jannik Sinner (6) vs Ben Shelton (19)
Francisco Cerundolo (20) vs Sebastian Korda (26)
Who is your pick to make the quarter-finals? Let me know in the comments.