Alcaraz beats Ruud to reach Paris final and set rematch with Shelton
Carlos Alcaraz defeated Casper Ruud at the Paris Masters on Saturday, winning 6-4 6-4 to reach the final and set up a rematch with Ben Shelton.
Alcaraz, who became the youngest man to complete the career Grand Slam at the Australian Open in January, had earlier survived two match points in his quarter-final against Taylor Fritz before advancing. His previous meeting with Shelton came in September at the US Open, where Shelton ended Alcaraz's title defence in a five-set quarter-final that finished at 03:34 local time. That US Open was Alcaraz's first tournament following a four-month absence to deal with a wrist injury, and he said of the upcoming final: "I'm ready to take on Ben Shelton in the final. It is probably one of the most difficult challenges you can face in tennis right now," said world number three Alcaraz.
Against Ruud in Paris, Alcaraz dominated on serve and in attack, winning 86% of points on his first serve and producing 20 winners, 13 of them from the forehand. He won 11 of 13 points at the net and a single break decided each set, with Alcaraz sealing both sets with an ace in an 86-minute victory. The Norwegian, beaten by Alcaraz in the 2022 US Open final, was denied any opportunity to break back.
The win takes Alcaraz beyond his previous best in Paris, where he had never gone past the quarter-finals, and means he has now reached the final at seven of the nine ATP Masters 1000 events. His 2022 victory over Ruud in New York also delivered his maiden major title and his first spell as world number one.
Alcaraz's form this season has been notable despite his time out: only Ben Shelton and Jannik Sinner have matched his six tour-level finals in 2026. Since losing to Shelton in New York he has lost just one of 16 matches and arrives in Paris on an eight-match winning streak after triumphing in Vienna last week.
World number four Shelton will provide the opposition after completing a three-set comeback against France's Luca van Assche, winning 5-7 6-3 6-4 to become the first American men's singles finalist in Paris since 2017. The 24-year-old has accumulated a career-best 45 wins this season and recently added Alcaraz's former coach Juan Carlos Ferrero to his team.
Shelton's five-set victory over Alcaraz at the US Open was his first career win over a top-three opponent; Alcaraz had won each of their first three meetings prior to that match. "Obviously Carlos is in amazing form. He's a young legend in our sport already and any match he is in is blockbuster," 24-year-old Shelton said.
Alcaraz will now face world number four Ben Shelton in the Paris Masters final, a rematch of their New York meeting in September.