PARIS, 30 October (H.S.): Defending champion Alexander Zverev fought back from the brink to secure his spot in the third round of the Paris Masters on Wednesday, defeating Argentina’s Camilo Ugo Carabelli 6-7(5), 6-1, 7-5 in a challenging encounter.

After conceding the first set in a tie-break, the German star quickly leveled the match by winning the second set in just 35 minutes. However, a major upset seemed possible when Zverev fell behind 1-3 in the deciding set, mirroring the early exit of World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz.

The top-ranked German demonstrated his resilience, mounting a comeback and securing a decisive break at 5-5 before closing out the victory. Zverev’s next opponent will be either 15th seed Alejandro Davidovich Fokina of Spain or France’s Arthur Cazaux.

Highlights from Wednesday’s Action

In a significant upset, eighth seed Casper Ruud of Norway was eliminated by Germany’s Daniel Altmaier in a straight-sets loss, 6-3, 7-5.

Former number one Daniil Medvedev advanced to the third round via a walkover after Grigor Dimitrov of Bulgaria withdrew with a shoulder injury.

It was a disappointing return for Dimitrov, who was playing his first tournament since retiring at Wimbledon against Jannik Sinner after leading by two sets.

The day’s play opened with a match between cousins Valentin Vacherot of Monaco and Arthur Rinderknech of France.

In a repeat of the Shanghai Masters final, Vacherot once again triumphed in three sets.

Ninth seed Felix Auger-Aliassime of Canada kept his ATP Finals qualification hopes alive with a thrilling 5-7, 7-6(5), 7-6(4) win over France’s Alexandre Muller.

Auger-Aliassime is currently ninth in the ATP Race, just behind Italy’s Lorenzo Musetti, who is set to play later.

—————

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar