BARCELONA, Spain: Stefanos Tsitsipas eased into the semifinals of the Barcelona Open on Friday, beating Alex de Minaur 6-4, 6-2 to stay on a collision course with defending champion Carlos Alcaraz.
Tsitsipas claimed the lone break of the opening set and then reeled off five straight games in the second as he won for the ninth time in as many meetings with Australia's De Minaur.
The Greek second seed will play Lorenzo Musetti on Saturday as he bids to reach the Barcelona final for a third time. He was runner-up to Rafael Nadal in 2018 and 2021.
Tsitsipas, the losing finalist at January's Australian Open, is bidding for his first title of the season. He lost to Alcaraz in the quarterfinals in Barcelona last year.
Musetti advanced via walkover earlier in the day when fellow Italian Jannik Sinner had to pull out because of illness.
"Sad to have to withdraw from my match today in Barcelona," tweeted Sinner, who beat Musetti in the Monte Carlo quarterfinals last week.
"I've been feeling unwell for a few days now. Today the sickness got worse and I'm not able to play. I'll take some time to rest and recover."
Top-seeded Alcaraz faces Spanish compatriot Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in the quarterfinals later on Friday.
Alcaraz, 19, is looking for his third trophy of the season after triumphing in Buenos Aires and Indian Wells.
On Thursday, world number two Alcaraz had to sweat as he beat Roberto Bautista Agut 6-3, 7-5 to reach the quarterfinals.
Alcaraz pulled out of the recent Monte Carlo Masters with back and hand problems and struggled at times against the veteran Spaniard as he continues to warm up for the French Open in May.
Top seed Alcaraz breezed past Nuno Borges on Tuesday but found it much tougher going in the last 16 amid windy conditions as he continued his Barcelona title defence on the court named after Rafael Nadal.
The 22-time Grand Slam champion is not playing in Barcelona because of a hip injury and announced earlier he will not be fit to take part in the Madrid Masters next week either.
"I'm very happy to go through to the next round, it was a very difficult game," Alcaraz told Spanish broadcaster Teledeporte.
"Everyone knows the capacity Roberto has, how tough he is, and it wasn't easy at all with the wind."
'GOOD ATTITUDE'
Alcaraz said that he had to accept the weather conditions with a "good face and a good attitude".
"We say that games like this you have to win with professionalism and hard work," he continued.
"It was very hard to play at the best level, for Roberto too, I'm sure."
Alcaraz started shakily, saving two break points in the first game, with Bautista Agut showing plenty of resistance.
The 35-year old played solidly and competed far better than in his Indian Wells defeat by Alcaraz in March 2022.
Alcaraz, 19, looking for his third trophy of the season after triumphing in California and again in Buenos Aires, struggled for consistency, making several unforced errors.
The 2022 US Open winner broke for 5-3 and consolidated it to win the first set, producing a spectacular stretching backhand winner in the final game which had fans out of their seats.
Alcaraz broke at the start of the second set and then held his serve for 2-0 to take a sixth game in a row, playing with more confidence.
Bautista Agut dug deep to resist his opponent's pressure and after the pair exchanged breaks in a topsy-turvy second set, took the lead for the first time at 4-5.
However Alcaraz broke for 6-5 and served out for the victory, clinching progress to the last eight with an ace.
Earlier, second seed Stefanos Tsitsipas eased past Denis Shapovalov 6-3, 6-2, to set up a quarterfinal clash with Australia's Alex de Minaur.
De Minaur progressed with a walkover after Bulgarian Grigor Dimitrov withdrew due to illness.
Jannik Sinner beat Yoshihito Nishioka 6-1, 4-6, 6-3 and will face Italian compatriot Lorenzo Musetti, who overcame Briton Cameron Norrie 3-6, 6-4, 6-1.
However, world number three Casper Ruud was knocked out by Argentina's 32nd-ranked Francisco Cerundolo, 7-6 (7/5), 6-3. -- AFP
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