World No. 2 to face Arthur Fils in the semis.
Looking more and more unbeatable with every passing match, Carlos Alcaraz thrashed Alex de Minaur 7-5 6-3 in the Barcelona Open 2025 quarterfinals on Friday. In an error-prone clash, the Spaniard overpowered his Australian opponent to emerge victorious in just over an hour and a half. Alcaraz will now face Arthur Fils in the final four, who came through prematurely after Stefanos Tsitsipas retired.
Alcaraz is currently on an 8 match winning streak on the ATP circuit. The four-time Grand Slam champion has won titles in Rotterdam and Monte Carlo this year. His win over de Minaur takes his 2025 record to 23-4, and extends his unbeaten run in Barcelona to 13 matches. World No. 7 de Minaur has been in fine touch on the red dirt himself – he reached the semifinal in Monte Carlo which included a double bagel against Grigor Dimitrov.
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It was a match that saw more than twice as many unforced errors to winners from both players, including 6 double faults from the Australian. While de Minaur made early inroads, Alcaraz did what Alcaraz does best. The defending Roland Garros champion remained unfazed by his serve being put under pressure, and struck some powerful winners when it mattered most to edge out the first set 7-5.
Set-2 began on serve, with both players retaining their opening two service games. The game slowed down a touch, and more errors began creeping into the encounter. When Alcaraz double faulted in the fifth game, there was a slight opening for his 26-year-old counterpart. However, Carlitos pulled back and went onto break de Minaur in the very next game – which was the final nail in the coffin.
Despite saving one match point, the No. 5 seed’s tantalising defensive prowess was breached. Attempting to retrieve a powerful 1-2 punch by Alcaraz, de Minaur sent his lob high and long – completing a third semifinal entry for Carlos in the Catalonian capital.
As he raised his arms aloft, Carlos Alcaraz breathed a sigh of relief at overcoming his toughest challenge yet. It was never going to be easy – de Minaur was inches away from reaching the Monte Carlo final last week. The Spanish bull is now one of six players to record eight consecutive tour-level wins in 2025. After the encounter, he discussed how he overcame initial hiccups en route to success.
“I started quite badly with the serve, I was struggling a little bit mentally with it,” admitted Alcaraz. He won only 57% first serve points in Set-1, before improving to 72% overall. “It was just the first few games with my serve, then I think I improved a lot. I calmed myself down and started to think positively again. Alex started strong, playing aggressively, and the first set was really tight.”
Alcaraz is bidding to capture his third Barcelona championship in four years. However, the competition is as stiff as it can get!
