Carlos Alcaraz beat Casper Ruud 6-4 6-2 to reach his 12th second semifinal of the season.
Alcaraz earned his 61st tour-level wins this season.
Ruud saved five break points in the first game of the opening set to hold serve. The Norwegian player broke serve at 30 in the second game after Alcaraz made three unforced errors. Ruud held serve in the third game to open up a 3-0 lead.
Alcaraz broke back to love in the fifth game before saving a break point with a forehand drop-shot to hold serve at deuce for 3-3.
Alcaraz earned a second break in the seventh game to take a 4-3 lead and held his final service game at love to close out the first set 6-4. Alcaraz hit 18 winners to 15 unforced errors. Ruud made two winners to twelve unforced errors.
Alcaraz converted his fourth break point in the third game with two passing shots to take a 2-1 lead. The Spaniard earned his second break on his fourth break point in the sixth game to close out the second set 6-2 to reach the first semifinal of his career on Chinese soil. Ruud saved 11 of the 15 break points he faced.
Alcaraz has extended his winning record to 4-0 in his head-to-head matches against after beating his Norwegian rival in the Marbella quarter final in 2021 and in two finals at the Miami Open and at the US Open 2022.
“I am very happy. To be able to beat a player like Casper in straight sets is really good. It means you are really playing well. It is really tough, big rallies at the beginning of the match, but I am really happy with the level. Being able to find solutions after the start of the first set. These kind of matches give you extra motivation”, said Alcaraz.
