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Monte Carlo, Principality of Monaco: Carlos Alcaraz reached the quarterfinals of Monte Carlo Masters for the first time on Thursday with a direct victory over Daniel Altmaier.

The fifth British seed, Jack Draper, was knocked out by Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, while Lorenzo Musetti won a totally Italian duel against a limited Matteo Berrettini.

On the other hand, Alexei Pofyrin saved the points of the game when he beat the Casper Ruud runner -up and the eighth sown Alex the Minaur dismantled the ninth seed Daniil Medvedev in straight sets.

Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has won the tournament in three of the last four years, left Nuno Borges aside. Grigor Dimitrov ended up the day surpassing Alejandro Tabilo.

The four-time Grand Slam champion, Alcaraz, was repressed to the Altmaier 6-3, 6-1, 6-1, 6-1 to establish a clash of last eight with the French star Rising Arthur Fils on Friday.

“His level (Fils’) is really high at this time,” Alcaraz said. “I saw a little of his game today, and he is playing very well.”

Alcaraz Tok some time to find his rhythm when Altmaier broke to the level in 3-3 in the first set, but it was a unidirectional traffic since then.

The second seed withdrew three consecutive games to take the first set before competing in the second in almost half an hour.

“At the beginning of the game, we play really long and hard manifestations, really closed games,” Alcaraz added.

The 21 -year -old, the reigning champion of the France and Wimbledon Open, is the favorite to lift the title this weekend after the first departures for the best sown Alexander Zverev and Novak Djokovic.

Alcaraz lost in his first game in his only previous appearance in the tournament in 2022.

Fils became its third quarter of successive teachers with a 6-2, 6-3 beating of the 2023 champion Andrey Rublev.

Fils, 20, aims to reach the semifinals of a Masters event for the first time, after losing in the last eight in Indian Wells and Miami Open this year.

“If it’s him, it will be the first time I will play it,” Fils said about meeting Alcaraz.

“It’s going to be a good experience. He is a great champion. He already won four Grand Slams. I won or.”

Draper lost in three sets against the Spanish Davidovich Fokina.

Draper, who won the title of Indian Wells last month, fell to a defeat 6-3, 6-7 (6/8), 6-4 since he could not reach a first quarter of Masters in Clay.

Davidovich Fokina beat a very close open opening set that had three breaks from Serve.

Draper let out three rest points in the ninth game, with Davidovich Fokina taking his second set point.

In the second set, Draper kept a game point and then leveled the contest in a tiebreaker.

In a third Topsy-Curvado set, thought, both broke twice within the first six games.

Davidovich Fokina delivered the decisive blow in the tenth game to ensure his first victory over an opponent of the 10 best in clay since 2023.

Davidovich Fokina will face the Australian Popyrina in the quarterfinals on Friday.

Popyrin, the world number 27, beat Ruud 6-4, 3-6, 7-5, after saving two 3-5 party points in the third set.

Musetti, sown 13, beat Davis Berrettini 6-3, 6-3 and then spoke of “the difficulty of playing a friend, a partner, a teammate.”

“This is a special court for me and also for Matteo. We share many moments here in Monte Carlo where we live,” Musetti said. “Definitely one of the most difficult challenges for me.”

Musetti will face Tsitsipas of the sixth seed that beat Borges 6-1, 6-1.

No. 10 of the world the mineur crushed the former winner of the US Open. Medvedev 6-2, 6-2.

“I’m finding my clay feet,” De Minaur said. “I like time in my career. I can be dangerous on this surface.”

The Australian will play Dimitrov, after the 15th Bulgarian sown beat Chilean Tabilo 6-3, 3-6, 6-2.