French Open 2025: Carlos Alcaraz reaches his 3rd successive semi-final
What's the story
Defending champion Carlos Alcaraz has stormed into the semi-finals of the 2025 French Open after a stunning victory over American Tommy Paul.
The Spaniard won the match in straight sets, 6-0, 6-1, 6-4 on Court Philippe-Chatrier on Tuesday.
This is Alcaraz's third consecutive semi-final appearance at Roland Garros.
He will take on Lorenzo Musetti in the semis. Earlier, Musetti beat Frances Tiafoe in the quarters in 4 sets.
Match details
One of Alcaraz's most dominant major tournament performances
Alcaraz's win over Paul was one of his most dominant performances in a major tournament.
The 22-year-old dropped just one game in the first two sets, coming close to breaking his own record for the least number of games lost in a Grand Slam match.
He had lost just four games against J.J. Wolf in the first round of last year's French Open.
Post-match comments
Comments and match stats
After the match, Alcaraz said, "I could close my eyes and everything went in. My feeling today was unbelievable. I was trying to hit every shot at 100%, not thinking about anything else, but just hitting."
He added that it was one of those matches when everything just went in for him.
The Spaniard hit 39 winners and made 22 unforced errors during the match.
Both players doled out three aces each with Alcaraz converting 6/17 break points.
Previous matches
Stellar run on clay continues
Alcaraz has had a stellar run on clay since last May, winning his first French Open title.
He has also won ATP Masters 1000 titles on the surface in Monte-Carlo and Rome in 2025.
The Spaniard is now 32-2 on clay, according to the ATP Win/Loss Index.
With this win over Paul, Alcaraz improved his head-to-head record against him to 5-2 on the ATP Tour.
Match significance
A historic campaign for Paul
This was Paul's first-ever quarter-final appearance at Roland Garros.
He became the first American man, along with Tiafoe, to reach the last eight in Paris since Andre Agassi in 2003.
Despite his loss to Alcaraz, Paul will rise four spots in the ATP Live Rankings and achieve a career-high on Monday.
Numbers
23 wins at Roland Garros
Alcaraz has improved to a 23-3 win-loss record at the French Open. He hasn't won more matches at the other three Grand Slams.
Apart from winning the 2024 French Open, Alcaraz claimed successive Wimbledon titles (2023-2024) and the 2022 US Open honor.
Overall at Grand Slams, Alcaraz owns a win-loss record of 69-12.