Alexander Zverev didn’t have things all his own way on Wednesday, but he stepped up when needed to reach the semi-finals at Roland Garros for the third consecutive season.

In a heavy-hitting baseline battle against Tomas Martin Etcheverry, Zverev overcame an attacking bombardment from the Argentine to triumph 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 on Court Philippe-Chatrier.

“The conditions during the day are a lot better for me,” Zverev said. “The ball is a lot faster and bounces higher. I love to play on clay and day conditions are better… I am in the semi-finals at Roland Garros and I am happy about that.

“The 5-4 game [in the fourth set] was incredible from both of us. He was hitting the ball extremely hard and I was hitting the ball extremely hard. At the end of the day I think I deserved to win.”

With his three-hour, 22-minute win, the German improved to 28-7 at the clay-court major, while he climbed four spots to No. 23 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. Zverev will continue the quest for his maiden major title when he meets Casper Ruud or Holger Rune on Friday.

Etcheverry, who advanced to finals on clay in Santiago and Houston earlier this year, was competing in his first major quarter-final. The 23-year-old did not drop a set en route to the last eight and played with aggression against Zverev, unleashing on the forehand to trouble the German.

After the first two sets were split, Zverev began to find his rhythm. From 0-2 down in the third set, the German reeled off five straight games to take control. He struck 12 winners in the set and moved forward effectively to win 86 per cent (12/14) of net points. Zverev then was then consistent in the fourth, limiting errors off his backhand wing and saving all four break points he faced to earn his 21st win of the season and 13th on clay.

“He is playing incredible tennis,” Zverev said when asked about Etcheverry. “He reminds me a lot of [Juan Martin] del Potro. The way he plays and the way he hits his forehand. He is an incredible player. I think if he continues to play like this he will be in the quarter-finals here a lot more and he can be Top 10 and win big tournaments. He proved it this week and I wish him nothing but the best.”

Zverev, who will compete in his sixth major semi-final on Friday, suffered a right ankle injury against Rafael Nadal in the last four in Paris in 2022. After a six-month recuperation period, the 26-year-old returned to Tour in January and has slowly regained his level. He reached the fourth round at ATP Masters 1000 events in Madrid and Rome before he arrived in Paris last week off the back of a semi-final run in Geneva.

Aiming to win his first title since the Nitto ATP Finals in 2021, the 22nd seed has made further progress this fortnight, defeating seeds Frances Tiafoe and Grigor Dimitrov.

“It was the most difficult year of my life,” Zverev said when reflecting on the past year. “I love tennis with all my heart and the competitiveness that was taken away a year ago. I am so happy to be back at this stage.”

Etcheverry had never won a match at Roland Garros prior to this year, but announced himself by defeating Jack Draper, Alex de Minaur, Borna Coric and Yoshihito Nishioka in Paris. The 23-year-old is up 18 spots to No. 31 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings following his run. He reached a career-high No. 46 last month.

Editor’s note: This story was translated from ATPTour.com/es.

The only negative Tomas Martin Etcheverry might find in the fact that he is still in the competition at Roland Garros is having to deprive himself of a large number of treats that his diet as an elite athlete prohibits him from eating. Ice cream, pizza and pancakes are some of the foods the 23-year-old Argentine only allows himself to have occasionally once he has been knocked out of a tournament.

But avoiding his guilty eating pleasures and sticking to the diet put forward by nutritionist Luciano Spena has been fruitful for the Argentine. Before making his bow in the quarter-finals of a major on Wednesday against Alexander Zverev at Roland Garros, Etcheverry spoke to ATPTour.com about the importance of food in his career. He also touched upon his potential as a chef and his favourite dish when he’s not competing (his grandmother’s milanesa).

If you invited friends for dinner at your house, what would you cook and why?

An asado. We’re pretty good with barbeques in my country. When I’m with friends I light the barbeque, we drink mate… You need a decent amount of time so that the meat is properly cooked, and I like that because I can relax, chat and rest.

How would you rate your cooking skills from 1 to 10?
I don’t know. I’m not bad. I’m best on the barbeque. I would like to learn to cook more. During the pandemic I tried to learn new things. I like cooking. With my girlfriend I took a lot of classes for tacos, sauces for pastas, and things like that. I still want to learn to make risotto and to season better. That’s the key to good flavour.

How strict are you with your diet?
Very strict! At the elite level it makes a significant difference in terms of fitness. Sleep and food complement that. It’s very important. I only allow myself certain things when a tournament is over. I might eat a dessert at night when I know I’m not competing. But I try to follow the diet.

Which foods do you eat when you cheat on your diet?
Ice cream! I really like zabaione flavour. I also have a weakness for flan, pancakes. Anything with cheese, fried things. After tournaments or when I’m taking a break in Argentina are the only chances I have to eat things like that. But the less you allow yourself to do it, the better. These things will do you no good in the long run.

How different is your diet on tour and when you’re not competing?
It’s pretty similar. Several Argentine players have the same nutritionist, he’s called Luciano Spena. He gives you several things to choose from. And you use that list as a guide. When you’re playing at ATP Tour level it’s very easy because you have everything at the tournament. You go to the canteen and everything is there. It’s most difficult at [ATP] Challenger Tour tournaments, for example. There will definitely not be restaurants at the club with so much variety, and you have to go out. Then you have preprepared meals and it’s more difficult to change them. But you do what you can.

What is your diet based on?
There’s always a protein and a little salad. We try to avoid dark meats, especially in competition. We eat pasta occasionally, around midday. It’s quite helpful. I also eat a lot of fruit, and I snack on protein bars mid-morning and in the afternoon. Supplements are another very important aspect.

Apart from desserts, which other foods do you avoid when you’re competing?
I can’t eat anything fried, nothing with fat. I have to avoid anything that could be too rich. Pizza for example.

What do you eat the night before a match?
Some meat with vegetables. That’s it. Something light. Maybe I can eat a dessert of just fruit and I’m done.

What about on the day of the match?
It depends a lot on the time. If I’m playing in the morning I eat more the previous night. If I’m playing in the afternoon I eat less the night before and I have a big breakfast in the morning. It depends on the plan. If I’m playing in the afternoon, for example, I’ll have something light at midday. Rice, maybe. It’s important to have had a decent breakfast.

What do you consume during matches?

I eat bananas and nuts. That keeps me going. In terms of hydration, a lot of water, some sports drinks and salts.

Which is your favourite dish you’ve ever eaten?
I have two. Matambre a la pizza, a dish in my country. And my grandmother’s milanesa. Whenever I go to Argentina I visit her so I can have it.

Would you like to learn how to cook it?
I can’t because it’s a secret and my grandmother won’t tell anyone! I don’t know if she’ll reveal it at some point. I don’t know what it could be, I’ve always wanted to know. But there’s nothing like it.

Do you have any favourite dishes that aren’t Argentinian?
Ceviche from Peru. The pasta in Italy is amazing. Also pizza. I know my diet doesn’t allow it, but when you go to Italy you have to have the odd pizza. It’s amazing.

Like anyone who’s watched Carlos Alcaraz storm through three seeded opponents to reach the Roland Garros semi-finals, Brad Gilbert has been impressed by the 20-year-old’s dominance in Paris. 

But for the former World No. 4 — who has coached the likes of Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick and Andy Murray — it is something other than Alcaraz’s seemingly limitless power that has stood out.

“He’s played with more guile. He’s played with more variety than he did last year,” Gilbert assessed. “He’s not trying to go through you. He can go through you, but he’s playing with a lot more shape and a lot more spin.”

After straight-sets wins against 26th seed Denis Shapovalov, 17th seed Lorenzo Musetti and fifth seed Stefanos Tsitsipas, Alcaraz now faces his toughest test yet in Novak Djokovic.

Gilbert noted the shift from three opponents with one-handed backhands to the steady and solid two-hander of the Serbian. But he also pointed to one significant mental edge for Alcaraz against the 22-time major champ — a factor that would work against the Spaniard’s three latest victims, who hold a combined 3-22 record against Djokovic.

“So many of these young guys, they come in with a lot of skeletons, facing Djoker. He doesn’t,” Gilbert said. “He just played him that one time [last year in Madrid], got through it, and then amazingly, won the tournament.”

Gilbert is not putting too much stock in Alcaraz’s 6-7(5), 7-5, 7-6(5) win from one year ago, given the faster clay surface and high altitude in Madrid. In fact, he makes Djokovic a slight favourite in the semi-final tilt. Using his customary American football analogy, he handicapped Djokovic as a half-point favourite, potentially rising as high as 1.5 points if wind is not a factor on Friday (Gilbert feels Alcaraz’s power and spin give him more options in blustery conditions).

“Just off of his amazing ability in best-of-five,” Gilbert said, explaining why he gives Djokovic the slight edge. That ability was on full display in the quarter-finals, when the Serbian weathered an early storm against Karen Khachanov and played a flawless tie-break to avoid falling into a two-set hole.

Djokovic has won all five tie-breaks he’s played this fortnight, all without a single unforced error. Gilbert calls it “lockdown mode”. But Alcaraz may be able to crack the code.

“Will he be able to do that against the Alcaraz offense?” Gilbert wondered. “Which maybe makes the coach in me think that you might see him play more offensive-minded. Maybe he thinks, ‘Shoot, if I don’t play a little more offensive-minded, I could get pushed around.’

“That’s what I do love about him. He can do something and, boom, it can change, because there’s still time in this five-set format.”

As far as the baseline exchanges, Gilbert praised both players for their defensive skills and movement and explained how they attack in different ways: “I would say Alcaraz has a big, big offense where he can hurt you with one shot,” he said. “And Djoker can string you four balls, which can burn your lungs.”

As for the intangibles, Gilbert doesn’t make much of Alcaraz’s relative inexperience deep in the Slams, but he does feel Djokovic’s ability to play his best with the crowd against him could come into play.

While he called clay a neutral surface for the competitors — Gilbert believes Alcaraz is currently at his best on hard courts — he likened the 20-year-old to Rafael Nadal in his ability to handle the Serbian’s best punch.

“Djokovic is playing a guy that, just like in Rafa on this surface, he could play well and still lose,” he said.

Brad Gilbert is the author of the seminal tennis strategy book Winning Ugly.

Marcel Granollers and Horacio Zeballos continued to march through the Roland Garros doubles draw with an upset of top seeds Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski on Tuesday in Paris.

The 10th seeds have not dropped a set in the tournament, and they carried their strong form into the quarter-finals with a 6-3, 7-6(4) win against Koolhof/Skupski on Court Simonne-Mathieu. The Spanish-Argentine duo saved the only break point they faced and won 85 per cent of their first-serve points in the victory while converting on one of their two break chances.

Granollers/Zeballos had not lost more than three games in a set this fortnight until they were pushed to a tie-break by the top seeds, but a strong finish ensured their perfect set record remained intact.

They will next meet fourth seeds Ivan Dodig and Austin Krajicek in Thursday’s semi-finals, after the fourth seeds moved past 11th-seeded Germans Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4. Dodig/Krajicek, who notched three of their four Roland Garros wins in a deciding set, secured the win despite converting on just one of nine break points on Court Suzanne-Lenglen.

Thursday’s other men’s doubles semi-final will see 12th seeds Matwe Middelkoop and Andreas Mies take on Belgians Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen. Both teams advanced with Monday quarter-final wins.

A spot in the main draw at Wimbledon is hard-earned, and this year will be no exception.

The entry list for qualifying at the upcoming grass-court major in London has been announced and includes a number of high-profile names. #NextGenATP Frenchman Arthur Fils, the big-hitting Australian Thanasi Kokkinakis and former Top 10 stars David Goffin and Lucas Pouille are among those set to compete at the Community Sport Centre Roehampton from 26-29 June.

Wimbledon debutant Fils is the highest-ranked player on the list. The 18-year-old Frenchman is at a career-high No. 63 in the Pepperstone ATP Rankings after lifting his maiden tour-level trophy in Lyon last month. His more experienced countryman Pouille will also hope to build on some promising recent performances. The 29-year-old reached the second round at Roland Garros as a qualifier and has pedigree on the lawns of SW19, where he reached the quarter-finals in 2016.

The World No. 108 Kokkinakis won his first main draw match at Wimbledon in 2022 and will look to deploy his free-hitting game to good effect as he chases his seventh consecutive main draw appearance at major tournaments. Goffin competes in Wimbledon qualifying for the first time since 2011: The Belgian has reached the quarter-finals at the Championships in each of the past two years, and holds a 16-8 record at the event.

Also joining the qualifying action will be a pair of former World No. 19s, Pablo Cuevas and Hyeon Chung. South Korea’s Chung, a semi-finalist at the 2018 Australian Open, has struggled with injuries for the past three years and will be competing at a Grand Slam for the first time since he competed in qualifying at Roland Garros in 2020.

A dream year keeps getting better for Chinese #NextGenATP star Yunchaokete Bu.

The 21-year-old, who claimed his maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in April, earned his first grass-court victory Tuesday at the Lexus Surbiton Trophy. Yunchaokete ousted Briton Harry Wendelken to set a second-round clash against his idol, three-time major champion Andy Murray.

“He’s my idol. When I was nine or 10, I started to love him,” Yunchaokete told ATPTour.com. “The dream has come. I don’t know how to describe this feeling, it’s pretty special.”

Yunchaokete recalled one Murray match in particular that he will forever remember.

“I think the [2012 London] Olympics match against Roger, that was a big one,” Yunchaokete said. “Because a month before, he just lost the Wimbledon final against him.”

Perhaps Wednesday’s encounter at the Surbiton Challenger will become Yunchaokete’s fondest memory of the Scot, who will be standing across the net.

Tied at his career-high No. 164 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, Yunchaokete has made rapid progress within the past year. After winning six titles on the ITF Men’s World Tennis Tour last season, Yunchaokete graduated to the ATP Challenger Tour, where he boasts a 14-9 match record in 2023.

When Yunchaokete triumphed at the Seoul Challenger in April, he became the third Chinese player to win an ATP Challenger Tour title aged 21 and under. Wu Yibing (2017) and Shang Juncheng (2022) both did it aged 17.

World No. 54 Wu made history by becoming the first tour-level titlist from China at the Dallas Open in February. A month prior, the teenager Shang became the first man from the Asian nation to win an Australian Open match in the Open Era.

Another Chinese star, Zhang Zhizhen, reached the quarter-finals of the Mutua Madrid Open last month. The 26-year-old became the first Chinese male to crack the Top 100 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings last October.

Yunchaokete, who is tenth in the Pepperstone ATP Live Next Gen Race, is drawing inspiration from his countrymen’s record-breaking runs.

“Before I played the final in Seoul, they gave me a lot of confidence and they sent messages to me saying, ‘Just be confident!’” Yunchaokete said. “Also after today, [Wu] just said ‘Believe in yourself!’ because he knows that tomorrow I play my idol.

“They give me a lot of confidence because I didn’t think I could be Top 50 or something, but now they’re close so I feel I can make it also. We have a good relationship, we text a lot. When Wu won the 250 tournament [in Dallas], I texted him and said ‘Congrats!’ and when he did well on the clay also.”

With his colleagues cheering him on from afar, Yunchaokete will be full of confidence — and excitement — when he aims for the highest-ranked win of his career against his idol, World No. 43 Murray.

Watch Andy Murray vs. Yunchaokete Bu (Third match on Centre Court Wednesday)

The Roland Garros quarter-finals wrap up on Wednesday, with two more players set to join Novak Djokovic/Karen Khachanov and Carlos Alcaraz/Stefanos Tsitsipas in the semis. 

In a battle of Top 10 seeds, Casper Ruud and Holger Rune will contest a rematch of their memorable quarter-final from one year ago at the clay-court Grand Slam, while Alexander Zverev faces Tomas Martin Etcheverry, who entered Paris with just one major victory.

ATPTour.com breaks down the two men’s matches on the Wednesday schedule.

[4] Casper Ruud (NOR) vs. [6] Holger Rune (DEN)

One year ago, the two Scandinavians squared off in a four-set quarter-final won by Ruud on the terre bateau. The 6-1, 4-6, 7-6(2), 6-3 victory extended the Norwegian’s perfect ATP Head2Head record to 4-0 against Rune and helped him on his way to his first Grand Slam final.

Rune was playing in just his third major last year in Paris, and he has since established himself among the ATP Tour’s elite. Returning to the French capital last November for the Rolex Paris Masters, Rune beat five Top 10 players in a row — including Djokovic in the final — to win his first ATP Masters 1000 crown and break into the Top 10 of the Pepperstone ATP Rankings himself. 

He entered his second Roland Garros at World No. 6 and is up to No. 5 — one spot ahead of Ruud, who is defending runner-up points — in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. Rune also came into the major with his first win against Ruud in tow, a three-set triumph two weeks ago in the Rome semis. (All six of their matches have come on clay.)

Looking ahead to the Ruud quarter-final rematch, Rune recalled a high-quality encounter from both sides last season in the French capital.

“I think last year it was a great match also. It was really close second and third set,” the Dane said. “He played great. He played I think one of his best tournaments last year here. So it’s going to be a tough match.”

He also added: “Obviously I lost last year. And it’s going be the same scenario, we play in a quarter-final, maybe night session again, maybe not. We’ll see. Hopefully I can turn it around and make it different this year.”

Rune was coming off of a four-set upset of Stefanos Tsitsipas in the fourth round last year when the two met on the Paris clay. This time, he reached the quarters with a dramatic win against 23rd seed Francisco Cerundolo in a fifth-set tie-break. With roughly 48 hours to recover, Rune will hope to be recharge for a match that could easily go the distance against Ruud.

Clinical Casper 🫡@CasperRuud98 defeats Jarry in straight sets to advance into the quarter-finals 7-6(3), 7-5, 7-5!@rolandgarros | #RolandGarros pic.twitter.com/n7Hfcj155O

— ATP Tour (@atptour) June 5, 2023

The 20-year-old was able to play freely last year as he rose up the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, but he now expects to be in these positions deep in majors. So too does Ruud, who admitted to feeling the pressure of backing up his stellar 2022 season that saw him rise as high as World No. 2.

“I can be just a little defensive with all my shots really, because I don’t want to make mistakes. I don’t want to hand my opponent victory when I know the importance of every point, every match,” he shared. “But sometimes you just have to sort of go for it and be a little bit more aggressive than what I have been this year.”

Ruud also said that the five-set format at the majors gives him more freedom to recover from mistakes or early deficits, and he has made a conscious effort to hit through the ball more this fortnight. That’s something that Rune has never had a problem with – though fitness issues have plagued the Dane at times this season, his body occasionally showing the effects of many deep runs on the ATP Tour.

With patience and power in equal measures, Ruud succeeded in blunting the power game of Geneva champion Nicolas Jarry in a straight-sets fourth-round win. On Wednesday, he will face even more firepower against Rune.

[22] Alexander Zverev (GER) vs. Tomas Martin Etcheverry (ARG)

Zverev is competing in the Roland Garros quarter-finals for the fifth time in six years as he seeks a third straight semi-final at the event. Etcheverry entered the major with a 1-5 record at the Grand Slams.

But both players have been in tremendous form this fortnight, Zverev losing just one set in his four wins and Etcheverry yet to drop a set.

After a topsy-turvy four-set win against Frances Tiafoe in the third round, Zverev raised his level in a 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 win against 28th seed Grigor Dimitrov on Monday night — his third straight evening outing on Court Philippe-Chatrier. The German appears to be nearing the tennis he showed last year on that same court, when he gave Rafael Nadal all he could handle before a gruesome ankle injury deep into the second set.

Despite the straight-sets win against Dimitrov, Zverev was not completely happy. He returned to the practice court to hit some serves before speaking with the press, disappointed in the way he let Dimitrov back into the third set.

“I felt like at 3-0 in the third set I got very unfocused,” he said. “I kind of thought the match was over before having it over, and I was not concentrated anymore, and my serve went missing a little bit. So I just wanted to get the feeling of having that back, because it’s going to be important for after tomorrow, I think.”

💬 “I feel like at 3-0 in the first set I lost my focus.”

Zverev reflects on his match during the press conference and gets ready for the incoming one ⤵️#RolandGarros | @AlexZverev pic.twitter.com/6kiRXT77yG

— Roland-Garros (@rolandgarros) June 5, 2023

Etcheverry was all smiles after beating Yoshihito Nishioka in three sets, running away with the final two after saving a set point in the opening-set tie-break. 

“For me I have a lot of emotion right now. I think I am really, really happy. The best moment of my life,” he said. “Of course, in the next round it’s going to be tough. Sascha Zverev, I think he has a lot of more experience than me, but I feel really good to play against him. I am playing incredible tennis this week, and just I have to focus on my game and try to do the same like I am doing every day.”

The Argentine, whose only previous major win came in the Australian Open first round earlier this year, knocked off 18th seed Alex de Minaur and 15th seed Borna Coric prior to his victory against Nishioka. By the Pepperstone ATP Rankings, the 22nd-seeded Zverev is the third toughest opponent he’s faced this week. By form, the German may be his toughest out yet.

In reaching the quarters, Etcheverry has soared 18 places to No. 31 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings. That puts him three places ahead of Zverev, who is defending semi-final points. Wednesday’s winner will move into the Top 25 in the Pepperstone ATP Live Rankings, with Etcheverry set for a new career-high regardless of the result.