The highly anticipated clash between top seed Carlos Alcaraz and Italian Jannik Sinner did not disappoint as they both secured quarter-final wins at the China Open. Alcaraz defeated Casper Ruud 6-4 6-2 keeping his perfect record against the Norwegian intact, while Sinner battled illness to overcome Grigor Dimitrov with a 6-4 3-6 6-2 victory.

“A very tough evening, the level was really high,” Sinner commented during his on-court interview. “I didn’t feel very good, maybe I ate something wrong. At one point I also threw up a little, but I’m happy with how I handled the situation.”

Second seed Daniil Medvedev had to regroup after a mid-match slump to beat Ugo Humbert 6-4 3-6 6-1 and advance to the semi-finals where he is set to face Alexander Zverev for the fifth time this season.

“I’m happy that I managed to raise my level in important moments, except a game in the second set,” Medvedev remarked. “It’s great that I managed to still find in this tough match these moments of consistency, which is enough to win. The further we go, the tougher the matches, the tougher the opponents. That’s normal.”

Zverev added, “It seems like we have to play each other every tournament this year. It’s the fifth time we’re going to play each other. Every time we play, it’s a battle.”

On the women’s side of the tournament, US Open champion Coco Gauff triumphed in her first match since winning a major, defeating Ekaterina Alexandrova 7-5 6-3. Iga Swiatek, ranked World No 2, made a strong Beijing debut with a 6-4 6-3 win over Sara Sorribes Tormo, showcasing her skills at the net by winning 15 out of 17 points. Swiatek will face Varvara Gracheva in the next round.