The Paris Masters 2023 got off to a shocking start as the World No.2, Carlos Alcaraz, lost against the former junior World No.2, Roman Safiullin. This was Safiullin’s first win ever against Carlos Alcaraz.
The Russian was a heavy underdog to win against the Spaniard but managed to do it in straight sets. The 26-year-old admitted that it was tough to defeat Carlos Alcaraz both mentally and physically. This win against the Spaniard has put the Russian in an exclusive list of players who have defeated the Alcaraz in straight sets this year.
Roman Safiullin cancelled out Carlos Alcaraz’s early breaks in the first and second sets to level things up before beating the Spaniard 6-3, 6-4. This was Alcaraz’s first game back from multiple injuries.
After the match, Safiullin spoke with the media and expressed his satisfaction with his performance against one of the world’s finest players. The Russian was thrilled to secure his first victory over the 20-year-old, despite Alcaraz’s suggestion that he wasn’t performing to his full potential.
“Since qualies, I was not playing at this level but against Carlos and these Top 10, Top 20 guys, you have to lift up the level, I managed to do it. For Carlos, it was not his best performance, but still I’m happy that I can win… Even if he’s not in the best shape it’s tough to beat him. So I’m really happy that I made it.”
With this victory, Roman Safiullin has joined an exclusive club of players that have beaten Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in 2023.
Players to beat Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in 2023
Roman Safiullin has joined Fabian Marozsan and Jannik Sinner, as the only players to defeat Carlos Alcaraz in straight sets in 2023. The Spaniard has continued his poor form since Wimbledon. However, even though Alcaraz was not winning matches, he was not going down without a fight.
The Italian Open in May 2023 was the first time this year that the Spaniard suffered a straight sets defeat. In a shocking result, Marozcan beat Alcaraz 3-6, 6-7 in the third round to knock the World No.2 out of the competition.
Another instance of Carlos Alcaraz losing in straight sets came at the China Open. In the semi-finals against his rival Jannik Sinner, Alcaraz lost 6-7, 1-6 to remain trophyless since Wimbledon. After a closely contested first set, Alcaraz totally game up in the second set, and had no answers to Sinner’s flawless game. Sinner went on the win the final, beating Daniil Medvedev.
